THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


DRAYTON-HALL    SERIES. 
No.  IIL 


ALLAN    HAYWOOD. 


A  Series  of  Stories  illustrative  of  the  Beatitudes,  by  ihe 
Author  of  the  "  Golden-Ladder'1'1  Series,  &c. 

Six  vols.  in  a  box,  $4.5O;  or,  separately,  as  follows:  — 

I. 
LAURENCE  BRONSON'S   VICTORY .    .    .  $0.75 

"  Blessed  are  the  poor  in  spirit." 
II. 

CHRISTY'S   GRANDSON 0.75 

"Blessed  are  they  that  mourn." 
III. 

ALLAN  HAYWOOD 0.75 

"  Blessed  are  the  meek." 

IV. 
FRANK  AUSTIN'S  DIAMOND 0.75 

"  Blessed  are  they  which  do  hunger  and  thirst  after  righteousness,  for 
they  shall  be  filled," 

V. 
EAGLE   CRAG 0.75 

'•  Blessed  are  the  merciful,  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy." 

"Blessed  are  the  peace-makers,  for  they  shall  be  called  the  children 

of  God." 

VI. 
TRUE  TO  HIS   FLAG 0.75 

"Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,  for  they  shall  see  God." 

"  Blessed  are  they  which  are  persecuted  for  righteousness'  sake,  for  theirs 

is  the  kingdom  of  Heaven. 


KOBEKT   CARTER  AND  BROTHERS, 

New  York. 


ALLAN   HAYWOOD. 


"  Blessed  are  the  meek,  for  they  shall  inherit  the  earth. 


BY 


THE  AUTHOR  OF 

THK  "  GOLDEN-LADDER  "  BKRIES,  "  LITTLB  KATY  AHD  JOLLY 
JIM,"  ETC. 


NEW  YORK: 
ROBERT  CARTER  AND  BROTHERS, 

530  BROADWAY. 
1871. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1870,  by 

EGBERT  CARTEB  AND  BROTHERS, 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


CAMBRIDGE  : 
PRESS  OF  JOHN  WILSON  AND  SON. 


TZ6 


CONTENTS. 


1MB 

I.  DRAYTON  BOYS 7 

n.  CHURCHILL  MANOB  HOUSE 23 

HI.  EAGLE  CRAG 45 

IV.  As  MEEK  AS  MOSES 66 

V.  THE  PARODY 86 

VI.  TRUST  AND  SUSPICION 109 

VIE.  PATIENT  WAITING 133 

VHL  BEN  THOMPSON 156 

DC.  REPARATION 178 

X.  THE  STARRY  NIGHT    .  191 


622820 


ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


DEAYTON  BOYS. 

,  Allan,  come !  How  long  do  you 
mean  to  keep  us  waiting  ?  " 
The  words  were  spoken  in  a  very  impa- 
tient tone  by  a  boy  who  stood,  croquet-mallet 
in  hand,  among  a  group  of  his  school-mates 
on  the  lawn  which  fronted  the  long-estab- 
lished institution  known  through  all  the 
country  round  as  "  Drayton  Hall."  The 
afternoon  sun  was  throwing  long  shadows 
across  the  grass,  warning  the  croquet-players 
that  if  their  game  were  not  soon  ended  the 
supper-bell  would  summon  them  indoors  be- 
fore they  could  decide  which  side  was  to 
bear  away  the  palm  of  victory.  It  had  been 
a  hotly  contested  game,  and  perhaps  this  was 


8  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


the  reason  of  Will  Seaton's  impatient  call; 
for  his  broad,  laughing  face  was  not  wont  to 
wear  that  look  of  annoyance. 

The  boy  addressed,  a  tall,  slight  young 
fellow  who  had  been  leaning  thoughtfully 
against  a  tree,  started  suddenly,  almost  as  if 
wakened  from  sleep,  at  his  companion's 
summons. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,"  he  said,  hastily 
catching  up  the  mallet  which  lay  on  the  grass 
at  his  feet.  "  I  believe  my  wits  were  wool- 
gathering." 

"  If  you  would  attend  to  your  affairs  instead 
of  dreaming  away  your  life,  you  might  be 
able  to  do  something,"  said  the  sharp  voice 
of  Arthur  Bentley,  who,  standing  beside  him, 
looked  at  him  as  he  spoke  with  an  expression 
of  unconcealed  contempt. 

The  rude  speech  was  unanswered  save  by 
a  good-humored  smile  as  Allan  sprang  toward 
his  ball. 

As  he  struck  it  into   position  it  touched 


DRATTON  £078. 


that  of  Arthur  Bentley,  which  lay  directly  in 
front  of  the  wicket  through  which  Allan's  must 
pass.  It  was  a  fine  stroke,  for  his  ball  had 
been  croqueted  far  out  of  line,  and  a  loud 
shout  showed  his  comrades'  appreciation  of 
his  skill. 

"  Your  dreamer  has  done  pretty  well,  Ar- 
thur," said  the  merry  voice  of  Will  Seaton. 
"  I  wouldn't  wonder  if  he  were  quite  wide 
awake  now,"  he  added,  as  Allan,  with  an 
apparently  light  stroke,  sent  his  opponent's 
ball  to  the  limit  of  the  ground. 

A  dark  cloud  gathered  on  Bentley's  brow 
at  the  laugh  which  followed  these  words; 
and,  when,  a  moment  later,  his  turn  came  to 
play,  he  glanced  toward  Allan  with  a  look 
which  drew  from  Seaton  another  sally. 

"  Don't  give  play  to  private  vengeance 
here,  Arthur,"  he  said  mischievously.  "  Wait 
till  you  catch  him  alone,  and  then  thrash  him. 
You're  big  enough." 

Only  those  who  stood  very  near  caught  the 


10  •    ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


words,  but  they  raised  another  laugh  ;  for 
Bentley,  a  square-shouldered,  powerful  fellow. 
would  have  been  more  than  a  match  for  three 
or  four  such  slender  boys  as  Allan  Haywood. 
Perhaps  he  was  not  to  be  blamed  for  feeling 
some  irritation  with  his  tormentor,  but  he 
revenged  himself  upon  an  innocent  victim. 

Taking  direct  aim  for  Haywood's  position, 
by  a  stroke  as  skilful  as  that  of  his  adversary, 
he  struck  his  ball.  "  Bravo  "  rang  out  from  a 
dozen  voices  ;  but  when  Arthur  placed  his 
foot  upon  his  own  ball,  and  with  a  blow  of 
tremendous  force  sent  Allan's  not  only  be- 
yond the  limits,  but  rolling  down  to  the  foot 
of  the  hill  upon  whose  summit  Drayton  Hall 
stood  sentinel,  a  murmur  of  disapprobation 
ended  in  loud  cries  of,  "  Shame  !  "  "  Unfair  !  " 
from  both  parties  of  the  combatants. 

"  I'll  have  it  up  again  before  my  turn 
comes,"  said  Haywood,  starting  in  pursuit. 
"  Don't  wait  for  me." 

But  a  hand  was  laid  on  his  arm,  and  a  low 


DRAYTON  BOYS. 


voice  said,  "  Stop.  Don't  you  see  that  he 
means  to  spoil  your  game.  He  knows  you 
can't  make  a  good  play  after  running  up  the 
hill.  I'll  go  ;  "  and  the  speaker  sprang  away 
at  a  pace  which  promised  a  speedy  return  of 
Allan's  property. 

He  was  not  one  of  the  players,  but  arm  in 
arm  with  a  companion  had  sauntered  upon 
the  lawn  just  in  time  to  be  a  witness  to  Ar- 
thur's ungenerous  act.  Looking  into  that 
bright,  honest  face,  with  its  broad,  open  brow, 
and  clear  blue  eyes,  you  are  not  surprised  by 
the  flash  of  indignation  which  has  frightened 
away  the  fun  and  frolic  which  usually  dance 
so  merrily  there.  It  is  just  the  face  which  you 
would  expect  to  see  darken  in  resentment  at 
the  sight  of  a  small,  mean  deed.  Swiftly 
running  up  the  hill  again,  he  paused  when  at 
some  distance  from  the  croquet-  ground,  and 
with  a  light  toss  threw  the  ball  just  within 
the  limits. 

"Well  done  for  Ned  Churchill!"  shouted 


12  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


one  of  the  lookers-on  ;  and  with  a  nod  of  re- 
sponse to  Haywood's  thanks,  Churchill  re- 
joined the  friend  with  whom  he  had  been 
walking. 

"  You  look  as  black  as  a  thunder-cloud, 
Ned,"  said  his  comrade,  as  Edward  linked  his 
arm  in  his  once  more,  and  they  recommenced 
their  saunter. 

"  I  do  despise  that  fellow  Bentley  !  "  re- 
turned Churchill,  hotly.  "  There  isn't  a  boy 
in  the  school  for  whom  I  have  such  a  perfect 
contempt.  He  knew  as  well  as  I  did  that 
Haywood  would  be  unfit  for  play  after  run- 
ning up  that  hill." 

"  Isn't  he  good  for  as  small  a  climb  as 
that?  "  asked  the  other.  "  What  ails  him  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know.  He  says,  '  Nothing,'  and 
laughs  at  me  when  I  try  to  persuade  him  to 
see  a  doctor.  But  there  must  be  something 
wrong,  for  he  can't  make,  any  exertion  with- 
out growing  as  faint  and  pale  as  any  girl, 
and  more  than  once  I  have  seen  him  press 


DRAYTON  BOYS.  13 


his  hand  on  his  chest,  and  bite  his  lips  as  if  he 
were  choking  back  a  cry.  Bentley  has  noticed 
it  too.  Only  yesterday  I  heard  him  chaffing 
Al  about  his  *  maidenly  sensibility  '  as  he 
called  it.  He  got  as  good  as  he  gave  though. 
Al  can  fight  his  own  battles  when  it  comes 
to  a  war  of  words.  If  he  isn't  as  burly  as 
Bentley,  he  has  more  brains  in  one  hair  of  his 
head  than  that  bully  has  in  his  whole  cranium." 

"  Where  now  ?  "  interrupted  his  friend,  as 
Churchill  drew  him  from  the  lawn  into  the 
carriage-road. 

"  Down  to  the  gate.  My  sister  is  coming 
over  with  a  package  for  me  this  afternoon, 
and  I  promised  to  be  at  the  gate  to  take  it,  so 
that  Thomas  need  not  leave  the  horses. 
She  dislikes  to  drive  in  just  at  this  time  when 
the  fellows  are  all  out  here,  and  she  could  not 
come  earlier.  There  is  the  carriage  now, 
turning  the  fork.  Come  on,  Larry;  and  I 
will  introduce  you  to  the  gayest  little  sister  a 
fellow  was  ever  blessed  with." 


14  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


It  was  not  a  girlish  face  which  looked  out 
of  the  carriage-window  as  the  boys  approached, 
nor  yet  a  pretty  face  ;  but  it  was  one  that  you 
could  love  and  trust  completely.  The  mouth 
was  large  and  not  quite  straight,  but  then  it 
could  smile  so  winningly  that  one  forgot 
that  it  would  have  been  more  beautiful  if  it 
had  been  a  trifle  smaller;  and  if  her  nose 
were  rather  short,  that  pair  of  soft  brown  eyes 
looking  out  over  it  made  up  for  all  its  de- 
ficiencies, they  were  so  bright  and  so  full  of 
love  and  gentleness.  Yet  they  could  flash 
too,  those  soft  brown  eyes.  If  any  harm 
threatened  the  boy  now  leaning  against  the 
carriage-door,  those  smiling  lips  could  set 
themselves  very  firmly,  arid  those  gentle  eyes 
darken  into  sternness  in  a  moment.  But  that 
was  for  him,  never  toward  him.  Edward 
Churchill  had  never  yet  seen  any  thing  but 
love  looking  out  at  him  from  the  windows  of 
his  sister's  heart. 

Mary  Churchill  had  travelled  on  from  girl- 


DRAYTON  BOYS.  15 


hood  to  "  the  happiest  old-maidenhood  that 
spinster  ever  enjoyed,"  as  she  wrote  to  her 
uncle  only  a  day  or  two  ago ;  yet  she  had 
not  grown  old  either.  Her  face  always  did 
wear  that  serious,  rather  matured  expression 
when  it  was  in  repose ;  and  now  when  she 
bent  her  head  courteously  toward  Laurence 
Bronson,  as  her  brother  introduced  his  friend, 
the  same  sweet  smile  which  had  won  so 
many  hearts  to  her  in  her  younger  days 
played  about  her  mouth,  chaining  Laurence 
also  to  her  chariot  wheels. 

"  Can  you  not  persuade  your  friend  to 
spend  the  coming  Saturday  with  you,  Ned?" 
asked  his  sister.  "  It  will  never  do,"  she 
added,  turning  to  Laurence,  "  for  me  to  be  a 
stranger  to  such  a  dear  friend  of  my  brother's. 
May  I  send  up  my  horse  for  you  when  the 
coachman  brings  up  Ned's  pony  ?  " 

Most  certainly  she  might ;  for  how  could 
such  an  invitation,  so  given,  be  refused? 
Laurence  bowed  and  smiled  his  thanks,  and 


16  ALLAN  BAY  WOOD. 


then  the  tea-bell  ringing  out  its,  for  once,  un- 
welcome summons,  Thomas  was  ordered  to 
drive  on.  and  the  boys  turned  back  toward 
the  Hall. 

«  Well,  Allan,  what  luck  ?  "  asked  Chur- 
chill, as,  reaching  the  door,  they  met  the  cro- 
quet-players coming  in  with  the  excitement 
of  the  game  still  strong  upon  them,  if  one 
were  to  judge  from  the  animated  manner  in 
which  it  was  discussed. 

"  Pretty  good,"  said  Allan.  "  Lights  won." 
"  No,  pretty  bad  :  lights  won,"  burst  in  Will 
Seaton.  "  It  was  a  good  game  though,  if  the 
other  side  did  beat  ;  well-matched  all  the  way 
through,  and  ending  in  a  glorious  scrimmage. 
Bentley  was  our  chief,  and  a  rover,  and  the 
rest  of  us  were  all  coming  up  nicely,  thinking 
we'd  surely  have  them,  for  Sam  Hilton,  one 
of  Al's  fellows,  was  far  behind,  when  Al 
dashed  in  among  us,  sent  us  all  to  Coventry, 
and  kept  us  there,  spite  of  all  we  could  do,  till 
Sam  came  through.  Bentley  fought  Sam 


DRAYTON  BOYS.  17 


hard,  and  did  him  damage  lots  of  times,  but 
Al  kept  the  rest  of  us  off,  and  at  last  sent 
Bentley  himself  down  to  the  other  stake, 
put  Sam  through,  and  then  gracefully  re- 
tired amid  the  huzzas  of  an  admiring  audi- 
ence !  " 

"  "We  thought  there  must  be  some  fine 
play  going  on,"  said  Laurence.  "  We  heard 
you  shouting  down  at  the  road." 

"  Yes  :  I  couldn't  help  shouting  as  if  I  were 
a  light  myself,  it  was  so  splendid.  But  I 
could  have  switched  him  for  disappointing  us 
so.  Never  mind,  we'll  pay  you  off  yet,  old 
fellow,"  he  added,  turning  to  Allan  as  they 
entered  the  dining-room,  and  enforcing  his 
threat  with  a  resounding  slap  on  the  shoulder, 
which  called  forth  a  sharp  reprimand  from  the 
usher  who  stood  at  the  head  of  the  table  ; 
but  the  mischievous  smile  with  which  Will 
turned  to  Arthur,  asking  him  if  he  should 
yield  him  his  seat  beside  Allan,  did  not  seem 
to  indicate  that  the  sternness  of  the  reproof 
I 


18  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


had  in  any  way  affected  the  overflow  of  his 
wild  spirits. 

Perhaps  there  was  not  among  the  three 
hundred  boys  who  composed  the  school  at 
Drayton  Hall  any  two  who  offered  in  their 
whole  character  and  appearance  a  stronger 
contrast  than  Arthur  Bentley  and  William 
Seaton.  The  one  loud,  boisterous,  ripe  for 
any  species  of  mischief,  yet  with  a  heart  true 
and  strong  as  oak,  the  boon  companion  of  all 
the  school  scapegraces,  while  he  was  at  the 
same  time  loved  and  welcomed  by  all  the 
more  orderly  of  his  companions;  the  other 
dark,  stern,  and  passionate,  disliked  by  the 
one  class  for  his  reticence  and  taciturnity, 
and  by  the  other  for  perhaps  no  better  reason 
than  that  given  in  the  old  ballad  :  — 

"  I  do  not  like  you,  Dr.  Fell, 
The  reason  why  I  cannot  tell." 

And  yet  these  two  were  close  friends.  In 
spite  of  all  Will's  merciless  banter  and  teas- 
ing, he  was  the  only  boy  in  the  Hall  for  whom 


DRATTON  BOYS.  19 


Arthur  showed  one  spark  of  affection  ;  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  all  Bentley's  ill-humor, 
flashes  of  passion,  and  fits  of  moodiness  were 
overlooked  and  borne  with  by  Seaton  in  a 
manner  totally  at  variance  with  his  general 
character. 

No  small  amount  of  teasing  fell  to  Seaton's 
share  on  Arthur's  account,  but  he  was  quite 
able  to  sustain  his  part  in  any  such  conflict; 
and  when,  as  sometimes  happened,  those 
whose  opinions  had  more  weight  with  him 
wondered  at  the  strange  friendship,  he  would 
answer  laughingly,  "  Oh  !  Bentley  does  well 
enough  if  you  take  the  trouble  to  get  through 
the  top-crust.  I  can't  help  liking  him,  he's 
so  spicy  when  he's  real  mad  ;  and  besides  if 
he  is  kind  of  ugly,  what  you  do  get  out  of 
him  is  the  real  stuff." 

And  so,  in  spite  of  remonstrances  from  those 
who  disliked  to  see  their  wild  but  noble-heart- 
ed comrade  hand  in  glove  with  one  whom  they 
did  not  trust,  and  the  jeers  and  tricks  of  those 


20  ALLAN  HATWOOD. 


to  whom  the  intimacy  was  a  standing  joke, 
Will  held  fast  by  his  unpopular  chum,  and 
laughter  and  persuasion  fell  alike  unheeded 
on  his  ear. 

He  had  hardly  had  a  fair  chance  in  life, 
this  unloving  and  unloved  boy.  Early  left 
to  the  care  of  ignorant  servants,  he  had  grown 
from  babyhood  to  boyhood,  uncontrolled  and 
ungoverned,  his  fiery  temper  fostered  by  al- 
ternate indulgence  and  harsh  restraint,  and 
his  tyrannical  and  overbearing  disposition 
strengthened  by  constant  companionship  with 
those  over  whom  he  held  the  place  of  master. 
But  in  his  eighth  year  all  this  had  been  sud- 
denly changed.  An  unfortunate  speculation 
ruined  his  father  ;  and  in  a  fit  of  desperation 
Mr.  Bentley  sold  his  beautiful  home,  and  sent 
his  wife  and  two  sons  to  a  brother  living  in 
Boston,  while  he  went  to  seek  a  new  fortune 
in  California. 

•Their  welcome  at  the  North  was  not  a  very 
cordial  one  ;  and  poor  Mrs.  Bentley,  a  weak 


DRA  y  TON  BOYS.  21 


and  feeble  woman  at  the  best,  soon  sank  be- 
neath the  weight  of  her  griefs,  and  the  two 
boys  were  left  alone  in  their  strange  home. 
Ronald,  the  elder  brother,  too  proud  to  accept 
favors  from  a  grudging  hand,  left  his  uncle's 
house  shortly  after  his  mother's  death,  and 
worked  his  way  through  school  and  college, 
until  by  the  mere  force  of  his  industry  and 
determined  will  he  had  completed  his  educa- 
tion, and  obtained  a  high  position  in  the 
school  of  Dr.  Drayton,  one  of  his  former  pro- 
fessors. 

During  all  the  years  of  his  absence  Arthur 
had  lived  on  in  his  uncle's  family,  knowing 
himself,  child  as  he  was,  barely  tolerated 
there,  and  feeling  most  bitterly  every  slight 
and  coldness  shown  him.  Severely  punished 
for  every  outbreak  of  his  hot  temper,  he  had 
learned  not  to  control,  but  to  hide  it, 
while  it  only  burned  the  deeper  in  his  heart 
for  being  shut  up  within  him,  making  him 
each  day  more  sullen  and  morose.  So,  when 


22  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


h\s  brother,  able  now  to  support  both  himself 
and  Arthur,  took  him  under  his  own  care,  he 
found  him  what  we  have  already  seen  him,  a 
perfect  Ishmael,  "his  hand  against  every  man, 
and  every  man's  hand  against  him."  And 
Roland  Bentley  was  as  unwise  a  guide  for 
such  a  character  as  the  boy  could  well  have 
had.  His  own  disposition  had  been  soured 
and  imbittered  by  his  hard  struggle  with  the 
world  ;  and  his  brother's  faults  were  encour- 
aged and  fixed  by  finding  all  their  types  in 
Roland,  his  pattern  and  paragon. 


II. 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE. 

i 

TV/TAR  Y  and  Edward  Churchill  had  been 
left  orphans  when  she  was  but  fourteen 
years  old,  and  he  a  little  infant  over  whose 
young  head  only  five  suns  had  risen  and  set. 
Well  could  the  boy  remember  the  all-absorb- 
ing story  of  his  father's  violent  death,  followed 
almost  immediately  by  that  of  his  mother, 
which  had  been  told  and  retold  in  his  child- 
ish days  by  his  old  nurse,  as  he  sat  upon  her 
knee,  listening  in  rapt  silence  to  the  sad  story. 
They  had  soon  been  left,  these  two,  almost 
alone  in  the  old  homestead  which  had  been 
for  generations  known  through  all  the  country 
round  as  the  Churchill  Manor  House.  For 
when  Ned  had  grown  to  be  a  sturdy  boy  of 
four  years  old,  Mr.  Henry  Churchill,  their 


24  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


father's  brother,  to  whose  guardianship  they 
had  been  confided,  had  been  forced  by  his 
business  relations  to  leave  home  for  China, 
expecting  to  remain  there  for  one  year  only. 
But  the  death  of  one  of  the  firm  having  made 
it  necessary  for  him  to  prolong  his  residence 
in  that  country,  twelve  years  had  now  passed 
since  he  had  seen  his  brothers  children. 

To  be  sure  there  was  "  Aunt  Milly,"  who 
had  been  left  nominal  matron  of  the  establish- 
ment at  his  departure  ;  but  Miss  Millicent 
Gray  was  one  of  those  quiet  old  ladies  who 
never  interfere  in  any  way  with  those  around 
them,  and  whose  absence  from  their  usual 
haunts  is  felt  rather  as  the  loss  of  some  old 
familiar  piece  of  furniture  than  as  that  of  an 
active,  living  presence.  If  her  knitting  and 
embroidery-frame  were  unmolested,  dinner 
on  the  table  at  the  appointed  time,  and  a 
novel  at  hand  over  which  she  might  lose  her- 
self in  an  after-dinner  nap,  the  world  might 
in  all  things  else  move  on  as  it  saw  fit  :  Miss 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  25 


Millicent's  hand  or  voice  would  never  be  lift- 
ed to  change  its  course.  Well  was  it  for 
Mary  that  she  possessed  a  good  share  both  of 
self-reliance  and  common  sense,  and  better 
still,  that  in  the  little  vine-clad  parsonage,  not 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  away,  she  had  two  faith- 
ful advisers  and  loving  friends. 

Churchill  Manor  House  was  as  pleasant  a 
place  to  visit  as  could  well  be  chosen.  Cer- 
tainly Laurence  Bronson  proved  it  so  on  the 
Saturday  following  his  introduction  to  its 
mistress.  The  old  house  itself  was  a  study. 
Built  more  than  a  century  ago,  and  added  to 
from  time  to  time  by  different  members  of 
the  family,  it  had  grown  to  be  a  spacious  but 
rambling  and  irregular  building,  with  wide 
halls  opening  into  large,  handsome  rooms, 
and  narrow  entries  leading  one  into  all  sorts 
of  out-of-the-way  nooks  and  crannies. 

A  very  museum  of  a  house  it  was.  One 
great  room,  whose  windows  opened  toward 
the  sea,  whose  waves  thundered  against  the 


26  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


cliffs  not  half  a  mile  away,  being  filled  with 
every  kind  of  ocean-treasure,  and  curiosities 
from  foreign  lands  gathered  during  years  of 
sea-life  by  an  old-times  Churchill,  who  had 
been  an  Admiral  in  the  British  navy,  and  had 
gone  peacefully  to  his  rest  without  a  suspi- 
cion that  his  descendants  would  live  and  die 
beneath  another  flag.  Another  room  con- 
tained the  arms  used  by  the  Churchills  from 
time  immemorial.  Old-fashioned  swords, 
daggers,  battle-axes,  and  cutlasses  rested 
against  the  walls,  side  by  side  with  fire-arms 
ranging  from  the  old  blunderbuss  and  firelock 
down  to  Colt's  revolvers  and  Sharp's  rifles. 
On  one  side  of  the  room  hung  suits  of  armor, 
one  of  them  dating  back  to  1415,  when,  on 
the  battle-field  of  Agincourt,  Edward  Chur- 
chill, the  first  of  the  name  who  had  ever  borne 
a  title,  was  knighted  by  King  Henry  for  his 
bravery;  for  before  that  time  the  Churchills 
had  been  but  sturdy  English  yeomen,  earning 
their  bread  by  hardy  toil. 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  27 


But  even  these  rooms,  interesting  as  they 
were  to  all  Ned's  friends,  failed  to  draw  Lau- 
rence from  the  old  gallery  where  hung  por- 
traits of  the  Churchills,  from  those  of  the 
present  day  back  to  the  brave  old  soldier 
whose  shoulders  had  felt  the  stroke  of  King 
Henry's  trenchant  blade.  Mary  had  been 
called  away  to  see  a  poor  woman  who  had 
applied  to  her  for  aid;  and  the  two  boys, 
after  going  the  rounds  of  the  house,  had,  at 
Laurence's  suggestion,  established  themselves 
in  the  gallery  to  await  the  luncheon-bell, 
which  Mary  had  promised  them  should  ring 
early,  in  order  that  they  might  have  a  long 
afternoon  to  spend  on  the  lake  which  lay  at 
the  foot  of  the  broad  lawn  stretching  away 
before  the  house.  » 

"  What  a  grand,  noble  face  that  is!"  said 
Laurence,  pointing  to  the  portrait  of  the  old 
yeoman,  which  hung  at  the  upper  end  of  the 
hall.  "  He  looks  as  if  he  might  spend  his  life 
in  doing  battle  for  the  right." 


28  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  Yes  :  he  is  a  brave-looking  old  fellow,"  said 
Ned,  throwing  himself  down  in  a  very  lazy 
attitude  beside  his  companion,  who  was  seated 
on  a  lounge.  "  But  there's  my  favorite." 

Laurence  turned  to  look  at  the  picture  to 
which  Ned  referred.  It  was  the  portrait  of 
a  revolutionary  officer.  An  old  man,  doubt- 
less, for  the  high  cocked  hat  rested  on  a  head 
whose  hair  was  white  as  snow  ;  but  the  erect, 
martial  figure,  the  piercing  eye,  and  the  firm 
hand  grasping  the  heavy  sword,  said  plainly 
that  the  old  soldier's  strength  to  do  and  dare 
was  as  yet  undiminished. 

"  Isn't  he  a  soldier?  "  said  Ned,  admiringly. 
"  I  do  love  that  man.  There  isn't  a  picture 
in  the  hall  that  we  value  as  much  as  his,  — 
with  the  exception  of  those,"  he  added,  his 
voice  falling  somewhat,  as  he  motioned 
toward  two  small  miniatures  which  hung 
against  the  wall  directly  in  front  of  them. 

"  My  father  and  my  mother,"  he  said  gently, 
as  Laurence  looked  inquiringly  towards  him. 


CHURCHILL   MANOR  HOUSE.  29 


"  They  died  on  the  same  day,  did  they 
not  ?  "  asked  his  friend. 

"  Yes,  when  I  was  a  very  young  baby. 
You  should  hear  my  old  nurse  tell  the  story. 
I  think  she  loved  my  mother  as  well  as  if  she 
had  been  her  own  child.  There  she  is  now, 
that  mulatto  woman  passing  the  window. 
Poor  Lailie!  her  strength  is  pretty  much 
gone.  She  is  a  feeble  old  woman  now,  but 
her  love  for  any  one  who  bears  the  name  of 
Churchill  is  as  strong  as  ever." 

There  was  a  knock  upon  the  door;  and  in 
answer  to  Ned's  "  Come  in,"  the  turbaned 
head  which  had  just  passed  the  window  ap- 
peared. 

"  Thomas  wants  to  know  if  you  could 
spare  a  few  moments  to  him,  Mr.  Edward. 
He's  in  a  little  trouble,  and  needs  your 
help." 

"  I  can  amuse  myself  here  easily,"  said 
Laurence,  quickly,  as  Ned  hesitated.  "  I 
have  a  fancy  for  pictures,  and  shall  enjoy 


30  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD 


examining  these.  Don't  make  company  of 
me." 

"  Very  well  :  I  shall  not  be  long  away,"  said 
Ned,  rising.  "  By  the  way,  Lailie,"  he  added, 
turning  to  the  old  woman,  "  I  knocked  down 
that  little  cast  this  morning,  and  broke  it 
to  atoms.  Just  take  away  the  pieces  with 
you." 

Directing  her  to  the  mantel-piece  upon 
which  lay  the  fragments  of  a  small  plaster 
cast,  he  went  out;  while  Laurence,  glad  to 
be  able  to  study  the  miniatures  at  his  leisure, 
leaned  forward  to  look  at  the  lovely  face 
before  him.  The  sweet  mouth  seemed  to 
smile  upon  him  as  he  gazed  at  it,  and  the 
soft  eyes  to  look  into  his  with  a  strange  ten- 
derness. Where  had  he  seen  that  look  be- 
fore ?  Yes,  he  knew  it  now  :  he  had  caught 
it  in  Ned's  face  at  times.  He  had  seen  it 
only  yesterday,  when  he  had  been  speaking 
of  Allan  Haywood.  But  the  boy's  every 
other  feature  had  been  inherited  from  the  face 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  31 


which  hung  beside  his  mother's.  The  broad, 
high  forehead,  the  firm  mouth,  the  very  set 
of  the  head  upon  the  shoulders,  were  all  the 
fac-similes  of  the  companion  miniature. 

As  Laurence  sat  looking  at  the  two  pictures, 
he  heard  a  slight  sound  beside  him,  and  glanc- 
ing up  saw  old  Lailie  standing  near. 

"  You  was  looking  at  the  mistress,  young 
master,"  she  said,  dropping  a  curtsey. 

"  Yes,"  said  Laurence  :  "  it  is  a  beautiful 
face.  And  Mr.  Churchill  must  have  been  a 
very  handsome  man.  They  tell  me,"  he 
added,  wishing  to  draw  her  on  to  tell  the 
story  to  which  Ned  had  referred,  "  that  they 
died  within  a  few  hours  of  each  other." 

"  And  so  they  did,  sir  ;  and  a  sad  day  it 
was  for  us  all.  If  I  might  make  so  bold  as 
to  tell  you  how  it  was,  sir,  it  might  pass 
away  the  time  till  Mr.  Edward  comes 
back." 

"  I  should  be  very  glad  to  hear  the  story," 
said  Laurence.  "  Sit  down  and  tell  it  to  me." 


32  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


With  another  low  curtsey,  the  old  woman 
obeyed.  Sitting  close  beside  the  pictures, 
her  dark,  wrinkled  face,  with  its  crisp  curls  of 
snow-white  hair  escaping  from  the  confines 
of  her  gay  turban,  forming  a  strange  con- 
trast to  the  fair  countenance  of  her  dead 
mistress,  she  folded  her  hands  upon  her  spot- 
less apron,  and  began  the  story  which  she 
never  tired  of  relating. 

"  Well,  sir,  it  was  one  nice,  sunshiny  day, 
very  like  this.  The  mistress  had  been  a  long 
while  sick,  a  many  months  indeed  ;  and  I'd 
had  the  care  of  her  all  the  while.  You  see  I 
was  born  in  the  house,  my  mother  having 
been  Mr.  Churchill's  nurse  when  he  was  a 
small  little  bit  of  a  baby  ;  and  I'd  lived  there 
ever  since,  doing  any  thing  I  could  while  I 
was  a  child,  then  being  nurse-girl,  and  at  last 
head-nurse  myself.  When  Miss  Mary  was 
born,  I  had  the  whole  charge  of  her;  for  it 
was  only  a  short  while  after  that,  that  the 
mistress  got  consurnpted,  and  couldn't  do 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  33 


much  herself.  So  you  can  see  how  it  came 
about  that  the  dear  lady  was  in  my  care  at 
all  times  when  the  master  had  to  be  away. 
Well,  as  I  was  saying,  it  was  the  beautifullest 
day  Pd  seen  in  a  long  while.  I'd  been  sitting 
upstairs  with  the  mistress,  and  she'd  sent  me 
down  to  the  kitchen  for  some  wine-whey.  It 
was  the  only  thing  we  could  get  her  to  eat,  — 
wine-whey;  and  she  wouldn't  have  nobody 
make  it  but  just  me.  She  had  very  few 
notions  for  one  who'd  been  so  long  ailing  ; 
but  that  one  she  had,  she'd  touch  nobody's 
whey  but  mine.  I  was  coming  up  the  stairs 
with  it  in  my  hand,  when  who  should  I  meet 
but  the  master;  and  it  just  made  my  heart 
ache  to  look  at  him,  he  seemed  that  worn  and 
weary.  For  weeks  and  weeks,  he'd  never 
had  a  quiet  night's  rest;  for  he'd  never  let 
any  one  tend  the  mistress  o'  nights  but  him- 
self, and  it  was  wearing  the  life  out  of  him. 
They  was  always  looking  out  for  each  other, 
them  two;  the  mistress  always  trying  to 
3 


34  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


seem  better  and  stronger  when  he  was  by, 
and  the  master  speaking  up  so  gay  and 
cheery  when  he  spoke  to  her,  never  mind  how 
tired  he  might  be.  But,  dear  rne!  we  all  saw 
through  it  easy  enough  ;  and  I  guess  they  both 
saw  through  it  too,  only  they  never  said  a 
word. 

"  Well,  as  I  was  saying,  I  met  the  master 
on  the  stairs.  I  knew  there'd  be  no  use  in 
asking  him  to  rest  for  his  own  sake  ;  but  all 
of  a  sudden  I  thought  of  another  plan  ;  and 
says  I,  '  Master,  don't  you  think  Miss  Mary 
ought  to  go  out  for  a  walk  ?  She's  looking 
pale  and  thin.  'Tain't  any  use  for  me  to 
advise  her;  but  if  you'd  ask  her  to  go  for 
company  to  you,  she'd  do  it' 

"  His  face  changed  all  in  a  minute.  '  She 
does  look  very  pale:  I  remember  noticing  it 
this  morning,'  he  said.  '  I  have  neglected  her, 
poor  child,  in  my  anxiety  for  her  mother.  A 
ride  will  do  her  good.  Tell  Henry  to  saddle 
the  horses  while  I  call  Miss  Mary  ;  '  and  he 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  35 


turned  off  with  his  quick  step  towards  her 
room.  I  laughed  to  myself,  as  I  went  to  give 
Henry  his  orders  ;  but,  oh  !  I  didn't  laugh 
again  that  day. 

"  I'd  been  in  the  mistress'  room  a  full  half 
hour,  when  I  heard  Mr.  Churchill's  voice  in 
the  hall,  calling  out,  '  Come,  little  bird,  the 
horses  are  very  impatient!'  Mrs.  Churchill 
told  me  to  go  to  Miss  Mary,  and  see  if  I 
could  help  her;  but  as  I  closed  the  door  after 
me,  Miss  Mary  came  out  of  her  room  all 
ready.  She  looked  so  pretty  and  bright  in 
her  habit  and  cap,  that  I  wondered  at  myself 
for  thinking  she  seemed  pale  and  tired  ;  but 
I'd  set  master  off,  and  that  was  enough. 
Mistress  was  lying  very  still,  so  I  went  down 
to  see  them  start,  for  I  hadn't  had  my  head 
outside  the  door  for  more  than  two  weeks. 
I  ran  down  the  stairs  after  Miss  Mary,  to 
take  a  look  at  master,  and  see  if  the  thought 
of  a  ride  did  him  as  much  good  as  it  did 
her. 


36  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


"  The  hall  door  was  open,  and  he  sat  right 
before  it  on  his  horse.  He  was  a  very  hand- 
some man,  was  master;  and  sitting  there, 
with  his  shoulders  thrown  back,  and  his  face 
all  aglow  with  holding  Hunter,  who  was 
dancing  and  prancing,  and  trying  as  hard  as 
a  horse  could  to  throw  him,  he  looked  just 
beautiful.  I  saw  Miss  Mary's  color  come  as 
she  caught  sight  of  him,  and  she  called  out 
so  merry,  'Oh,  what  a  gay  horseman!  I'm 
proud  of  my  handsome  cavalier!'  Master 
took  off  his  hat  and  made  a  low  bow,  just 
like  he  was  a  fine  young  gentleman  come 
courting  of  Miss  Mary.  And  then  —  and 
then  —  I  never  rightly  knew  how  it  happened, 
whether  the  sweep  of  his  hat  startled  Hunter, 
or  what  it  was,  but  the  creature  reared  till 
he  seemed  to  stand  straight  on  his  hind 
feet,  and  then  fell  over  backward,  with  the 
master  under  him.  Oh,  it  was  an  awful 
sight  ! 

"  I  don't  know  whether  we  all  thought  of 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  37 


mistress  then  or  not  ;  but  no  one  screamed  or 
called  out  I  heard  a  strange,  choked  sort 
of  cry;  and  Miss  Mary  rushed  past  me,  and 
I  saw  her  kneel  down  close  to  that  frantic, 
plunging  horse,  and  look  into  her  father's  face. 
The  men,  Henry  and  Thomas,  had  Hunter 
up  in  another  minute  ;  but  they  never  laid  a 
hand  on  master,  they  didn't  dare.  Miss 
Mary  sat  there,  staring,  staring,  as  if  she 
would  never  lift  her  eyes  from  his  face  ;  and 
we  was  all  afraid  to  go  near  to  her,  there  was 
such  an  awful  look  in  her  eyes.  There  was 
nothing  dreadful  to  see  in  poor  master.  His 
face  hadn't  been  touched  :  it  was  only  very, 
very  white  ;  but  his  poor  chest  was  all  crushed 
in.  We  could  see  that  as  he  lay  on  the  grass 
with  his  head  in  Miss  Mary's  lap:  she  had 
laid  it  there  when  she  first  knelt  down  beside 
him.  After  a  bit,  she  roused  herself  quite 
sudden-like. 

"  '  Why   do    you    stand   here  ?  '    she   said, 
speaking  out  loud  and  clear.     '  Henry,  take 


38  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


Fellie  and  ride  for  Dr.  Brainerd.  Thomas, 
call  John,  and  carry  Mr.  Churchill  into  the 
house.  Lailie,  go  up  to  my  mother.  Tell  her 
I  will  be  with  her  in  a  few  minutes.  Go 
softly,  she  may  be  asleep.' 

"  It  seemed  too  strange  to  believe  :  that  bit 
of  a  girl,  fourteen  years  old,  ordering  us  all 
around  so  strong  and  woman-like,  and  even 
thinking  of  keeping  her  sick  mother  asleep  if 
she  could.  But,  oh  !  there  wasn't  no  sleep 
for  the  mistress.  That's  another  thing  we'll 
never  know,  —  why  she  got  up,  and  how  she 
ever  walked  to  that  window.  But  when  I 
went  in,  there  she  was  sitting  at  the  window, 
where  she  could  see  every  thing  ;  and  she  had 
seen  every  thing. 

"  I  gave  a  scream  when  I  saw  her,  —  such  a 
scream  that  poor  Miss  Mary  left  her  father, 
and  rushed  upstairs.  But  the  mistress  only 
held  out  her  hand,  and  said,  with  a  sweet, 
curious  smile,  '  Don't  be  frightened,  good 
Lailie.  I  shall  go  to  him  !  '  And  when  Miss 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  39 


Mary  came  in,  and  knelt  down  by  her  with- 
out speaking  a  single  word,  mistress  wrapped 
her  arms  around  her  and  held  her  very  close 
and  tender,  whispering  softly,  '  Only  a  little 
while  apart;  only  a  little  while!  ' 

"  After  a  minute,  Miss  Mary  said,  *  Lailie 
will  take  care  of  you,  mother:  father  may 
want  me.'  And  she  only  smiled  that  strange 
little  smile  again,  and  just  opened  her  arms, 
and  let  her  go. 

"  I  asked  her  would  she  go  back  to  her 
bed,  and  she  said,  *  Yes.'  So  I  lifted  her  in 
my  arms,  as  I'd  often  done  before  when  the 
master  wasn't  at  hand,  and  carried  her  across 
the  room,  and  laid  her  on  the  bed.  Pretty 
soon  the  doctor  came:  I  heard  him  walk 
across  the  hall,  and  I  went  to  the  door  to  hear 
what  he  would  say.  I  could  see  him  as  he 
stood  by  the  side  of  the  sofa  where  they  had 
laid  master.  He  looked  at  him  for  a  minute, 
then  he  turned  to  Miss  Mary,  and  all  he  said 
was,  *  Poor  little  maid  !  '  I  knew  what  was 


40  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


coming  then.  I  knew  it  was  all  over  with 
master,  and  I  stole  back  softly  to  the  mistress. 
She  never  took  no  notice,  but  lay  very  still 
with  that  lovely  smile  on  her  face.  And  so 
she  laid  till  toward  evening,  seeming  not  to 
see  any  of  us.  Miss  Mary  and  the  doctor 
and  Mr.  Henry  Churchill  were  all  three  be- 
side her.  They  didn't  need  to  stay  with  the 
master  more  than  a  few  minutes  after  Dr. 
Brainerd  came  in.  He'd  gone  where  we 
couldn't  reach  him,  nor  do  him  no  good.  He 
was  away  up  above  us  ;  and  so  we'd  all 
gathered  around  the  poor  mistress  that  he'd 
left  behind  him. 

"  All  at  once  her  eyes  flashed  open  very 
wide,  and  she  says,  '  Mary,  little  Mary  !  ' 
Miss  Mary  leaned  over  her,  and  she  says, 
'  I'm  going  to  father,  my  darling.  I  give 
your  baby-brother  to  you:  you  must  be  a 
mother  to  him.'  She  stretched  out  her  hand 
toward  the  baby  —  that  was  poor  little  Master 
Ned  —  lying  at  her  side.  His  uncle,  Mr. 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  41 


Harry,  lifted  him  up,  and  laid  him  on  her 
breast.  She  kissed  his  forehead  and  lips, 
and  his  tiny  hands  ;  and  then  she  said,  {  Take 
him,  Mary.  He  is  yours.  Be  a  loving, 
patient  mother  to  my  orphan  baby.' 

"  Miss  Mary  took  him  in  her  arms,  and 
then  the  mother  motioned  her  to  kneel  down 
beside  the  bed,  and  she  put  her  hands  on 
his  head  and  hers,  and  prayed  God  to  bless 
them  both.  It  was  the  beautifullest  prayer 
I  ever  heard,  like  a  little  child  asking  some- 
thing of  its  father,  so  gentle  and  pleading-like. 
While  she  was  saying  '  Amen,'  the  sun,  which 
had  been  clouded  that  afternoon,  broke  out 
all  of  a  sudden,  and  the  brightness  fell  right 
across  her  face.  I  don't  know  how  the 
angels'  faces  look,  sir,  but  I'm  sure  the  mis- 
tress' must  have  shone  like  theirs,  as  she 
lifted  it  up  from  the  pillow,  saying  softly, 
*  Yes,  Edward  :  the  Master  has  come.  He 
has  called  us  both  home.'  Oh,  so  glad  and 
so  content  her  look  was  !  We  laid  her  down 


42  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


again  upon  the  bed,  and  Mr.  Henry  led  Miss 
Mary  away,  with  the  tiny  baby  held  tight  in 
her  arms." 

The  old  nurse  paused  again,  but  Laurence, 
not  feeling  sure  that  the  story  was  ended,  and 
unwilling  to  lose  any  part  of  it,  did  not  speak. 
After  waiting  a  moment,  she  rose.  So  interest- 
ed had  both  hearer  and  speaker  been  in  the  re- 
cital that  they  had  not  noticed  the  entrance  of 
Miss  Churchill  ;  and  both  started  in  surprise 
when  her  gentle  voice  addressed  Laurence,  — 

"  So  Lailie  has  been  telling  you  the  old  story 
which  to  us  is  ever  new,"  she  said,  with  an 
accent  of  sadness  in  her  tone.  "  She  forgets 
that  all  are  not  as  much  interested  in  it  as 
we.  You  must  excuse  her." 

"  I  have  to  thank,  rather  than  excuse 
her,"  said  Laurence,  warmly.  "  I  have  been 
greatly  interested.  I  am  very  much  obliged 
to  you,"  he  added,  turning  to  Lailie,  as,  with 
another  of  her  sweeping  curtseys,  she  was 
leaving  the  room.  "  You  can  tell  a  story  well." 


CHURCHILL  MANOR  HOUSE.  43 


"  You're  very  good  to  say  so,  sir,"  she  an- 
swered with  a  pleased  smile. 

"  Lailie  is  a  sort  of  privileged  character  in 
the  house,"  said  Miss  Churchill,  apologetically, 
as  the  door  closed  behind  the  old  nurse. 
"  Her  love  for  my  mother  amounted  almost 
to  worship,  and  her  tenderness  to  us  in  our 
childhood  was  most  deep  and  true.  She 
never  wearies  of  that  sad  day  which  left  my 
baby-brother  to  my  sole  love  and  care  ;  but  I 
am  afraid  she  has  tired  you." 

"  Indeed,  she  has  not.  Ned  had  to  leave 
me  for  a  few  moments,  and  I  was  looking  at 
your  mother's  miniature  when  Lailie  spoke 
to  me.  I  asked  her  for  the  story.  It  is  a 
very  lovely  face,  Miss  Churchill." 

"  And  it  pictures  a  very  lovely  woman," 
she  answered,  with  a  slight  quiver  in  her 
voice.  "  Lailie  may  well  enjoy  speaking  of 
her." 

"  But  come,"  she  said  more  lightly,  throw- 
ing off  in  a  moment  the  grieved  look  which 


44  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


had  fallen  upon  her  face.  "  There  is  Ned's 
step  in  the  hall;  and,  as  lunch  is  ready,  we 
may  as  well  go  out  and  meet  him  on  our  way 


to  the  dining-room." 


III. 


EAGLE  CRAG. 

"  "1 T  7 ELL,  Larry,  I    suppose  we  may  as 
well  be  off,"  said  Ned,  pushing  back 
his  chair  from  the   lunch-table   as  he  spoke. 
"  Mary,  will  you  come  with  us  ?  " 

"  I  should  like  it  very  much,  but  I  shall 
not  be  able  to  gratify  my  inclinations,"  said 
Mary.  "  That  woman  who  was  here  this 
morning  came  to  tell  me  that  old  John  Bur- 
gess' daughter  is  very  ill,  and  John  sent  up 
to  ask  if  I  would  come  down  to  see  her." 

"  Oh !  wait  until  to-morrow,  and  go  over  there 
with  Mr.  Leonard  after  school.  We  want 
you  with  us  this  afternoon." 

"  And  I  would  like  only  too  well  to  be 
with  you.  It  is  a  splendid  day  for  a  sail  on 
the  lake.  But  suppose  that  the  woman  should 
die  to-night  ?  " 


46  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


"  Well,"  said  Ned,  slowly,  "  if  you  will  go, 
you  will.  I  learned  that  lesson  long  ago. 
But  we  will  walk  down  with  you,  for  I  won't 
let  you  go  to  that  place  alone  when  there  are 
so  many  roughs  about." 

She  leaned  over  him,  and  with  a  low, 
musical  laugh,  took  his  face  between  her 
hands  as  she  said,  "  O  you  old  grandfather  ! 
what  do  you  suppose  I  do  when  you  are  at 
school  ?  Do  you  think  that  our  poor  people 
are  deserted  all  the  week  ?  But  I  shall  not 
let  your  pleasure  be  spoiled  with  worrying 
over  me.  I  will  stop  at  the  Parsonage,  and 
coax  Mrs.  Leonard  to  go  to  the  beach  with 
me.  I  will  tell  her  that  my  ancient  ancestor 
is  afraid  to  have  his  elderly  grand-daughter 
walk  out  alone  :  shall  I  ?  " 

"  You  may  tell  her  what  you  like  if  you 
only  persuade  her  to  go  with  you,"  he  said. 
"  It  may  do  very  well  for  you  to  visit  among 
youv  Sunday-school  people,  and  the  old 
fishermen  who  belong  here;  but  just  now, 


EAGLE  CRAG.  47 


while  the  fish  are  so  abundant,  the  village  ia 
overrun  with  strangers,  and  I  don't  like  tp 
have  you  walk  there  alone." 

He  spoke  so  seriously  that  Mary  checked 
the  laughing  answer  that  rose  to  her  lips. 

"  Very  well,"  she  said  ;  "  then  I  will  not 
visit  alone.  You  may  set  your  heart  at 
rest." 

"  And  we  cannot  persuade  you  to  go  out 
on  the  lake  with  us  ?  "  asked  Laurence,  wist- 
fully. 

"  No,  I  think  not.  But  if  you  care  to  have 
me  do  so,  I  will  ride  with  you  to  the  Hall 
after  dinner.  It  will  be  bright  moonlight  to- 
night, and  one  of  the  men  can  ride  over  with 
us,  and  bring  me  back." 

"  That  is  better  than  nothing,"  said  Ned. 
"  But  our  time  is  slipping  away,  Larry  ;  so 
we  had  better  start.  If  she  will  not  go  with 
us  we  must  e'en  go  alone,  —  unless,"  he  add- 
ed, with  a  mischievous  glance  across  the 
table,  "  unless  Aunt  Milly  will  accompany  us." 


48  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  O  Edward,  my  dear  !  "  exclaimed  Miss 
Millicent,  lifting  her  hands  in  dismay,  "  you 
eurely  do  not  mean  it.  I  am  so  nervous  on 
the  water  at  the  best,  and  with  two  young  — 
I'm  sure  I  mean  no  want  of  respect  to 
you,  Mr.  Bronson,"  and  she  bowed  with  old- 
fashioned  courtesy  to  Laurence  ;  "  but  really, 
really  you  are  both  very  young  —  and  — 
and"  — 

"  But,  Aunt  Milly,  don't  you  think  that 
you  ought  to  be  with  us  to  take  care  of  us, 
we  are  both  so  very  young,  and  so  reckless  ?  " 
urged  Ned,  with  such  apparent  earnestness 
that  Miss  Millicent  looked  up  at  Mary  in  a 
sort  of  bewildered  despair. 

"Do  you  think  I  ought  to  go,  my  dear?" 
she  asked  entreatingly.  "  It  would  be  terrible 
if  any  thing  should  happen  to  them.  Perhaps 
Thomas  had  better  accompany  them.  He 
might  be  of  service  in  case  of  accident." 

"  Oh  !  he  wouldn't  know  what  to  do,  Auntie," 
interrupted  Ned.  "  And,  besides,  we  wouldn't 


EAGLE  CRAG.  49 


be  so  likely  to  listen  to  his  advice  as  to  yours. 
Come,  I  think  we'll  have  to  take  you  with 
us  *  "  and  he  laid  his  hand  on  her  chair  as  if 
to  draw  her  away  from  the  table  ;  but  Miss 
Millicent's  piteous  look  brought  Mary  to  the 
rescue. 

"  That's  all  Ned's  nonsense,  Auntie,'1  she 
said  consolingly.  "  They  are  quite  able  to 
take  care  of  themselves.  Now  away  with 
you,"  she  went  on,  turning  to  her  brother. 
"  You  shall  not  plague  Aunt  Milly  any 
more." 

"  You  don't  mind  it  :  do  you,.  Aunt  Milly  ?  " 
said  the  boy,  stopping  on  his  way  from  the 
room  to  kiss  the  troubled  old  face  which  was 
looking  after  him. 

"  No,  my  dear,  no  ;  only  it  makes  me  a 
little  nervous  perhaps.  But  are  you  quite 
sure  it  is  not  best  for  me  to  go  ?  If  any  thing 
should  happen,  I  could  never  forgive  my- 
self." 

"  No  :  that  was  only  fun,  Aunt  Milly.  Don't 


50  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


worry.  We'll  be  careful  of  ourselves.  Come, 
Larry  ;  "  and  away  the  boys  went,  Mary 
following  them  to  the  front  door. 

"Edward,  Edward,  my  dear!"  called  a 
soft  voice,  as  they  sprang  down  the  steps  of 
the  piazza. 

"  What  now  ?  "  said  Ned,  a  little  impatient- 
ly, turning  toward  the  house  again. 

"  It  is  Aunt  Milly,"  said  Mary,  laughing. 
"  You  will  have  to  go  back.  I  am  not  a  bit 
sorry  for  you  either,  you  saucy  boy." 

"  Edward,  my  dear,"  said  Miss  Millicent, 
gently,  looking  out  from  the  dining-room 
window  with  a  very  anxious  face,  "  if  you 
can  wait  one  moment,  I  will  bring  you  from 
my  room  some  directions  which  I  cut  out 
from  a  paper  the  other  day  for  the  resuscita- 
tion of  drowning  persons.  Perhaps  you  had 
better  take  them  in  case  of  accident." 

Ned's  merry  laugh  broke  out  joyously  ;  and 
I^aurence  and  Mary  could  not  help  joining 
it. 


EAGLE  CRAG.  51 


"  Thank  you,  Auntie,"  he  said,  looking  up 
at  her  with  a  look  which  was  a  most  perfect 
contrast  to  her  anxious  expression.  "  But  I 
think  we  will  enjoy  our  sail  quite  as  well 
without  your  paper.  It  would  be  more 
suggestive  than  cheering.  Good-by  :  now  we 
are  off;  "  and  seizing  Laurence's  arm,  he 
rushed  down  the  carriage-road  at  a  pace 
which  promised  a  speedy  escape  from  any 
farther  detentions  on  Aunt  Milly's  part.  Mary 
stood  looking  after  him  with  a  troubled  look 
in  her  eyes,  until,  reaching  the  turn  in  the 
road  which  must  hide  him  from  her  sight,  he 
turned  to  wave  his  hat  to  her,  and  shout  a 
last  "  good-by  ;  "  then  she  went  into  the 
house  to  meet  Aunt  Milly's  many  questions 
and  anxieties  with  regard  to  the  boys. 

"  He  is  so  very,  very  thoughtless,"  she  said  to 
herself,  as,  having  calmed  as  much  as  possible 
Aunt  Milly's  distracted  nerves,  she  went  up- 
stairs to  prepare  for  her  walk.  "  I  wonder  if 
I  spoil  him."  But  after  a  while  the  shac^w 


52  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


faded  from  her  face  ;  and  by  the  time  she 
reached  the  Parsonage,  on  her  way  to  the 
village,  she  wore  her  old  look  of  happy  con- 
tent. After  all,  thoughtless  as  he  was,  she 
could  not  feel  that  she  had  spoiled  him. 

It  was  a  most  perfect  afternoon  for  a  boat- 
ing excursion,  the  wind  just  cool  enough  to 
make  the  exertion  of  rowing  pleasant,  with- 
out being  in  the  least  chilly  ;  and  Laurence 
enjoyed  it  to  the  utmost.  The  low,  wooded 
shore,  bright  now  with  starry  anemones  and 
sweet  spring  violets,  brought  back  to  his 
mind  thoughts  of  the  dear  old  homestead 
where  much  of  his  childhood  had  been  passed  ; 
and  he  almost  fancied  himself  floating  down 
the  stream  which  flowed  at  the  foot  of  the 
garden  in  Glencoe.  A  sort  of  quiet  had  fallen 
on  him,  and  his  oar  rested  in  the  rowlock  as 
his  thoughts  ran  back  to  the  old  home,  until 
Ned  broke  into  his  reverie  by  saying,  — 

"  Look  there,  Larry.  Do  you  recognize 
that  old  giant  ?  " 


EAGLE  CRAG.  53 


Looking  up  quickly,  he  saw  that  the  scene 
had  changed  completely.  The  shore  had 
grown  rocky  in  some  places,  running  up 
almost  precipitously  from  the  border  of  the 
lake,  while  directly  before  them,  apparently 
barring  their  farther  progress,  rose  a  huge 
rock,  which  seemed  to  have  been  thrown  en- 
tirely across  the  lake,  shutting  it  in  com- 
pletely from  the  world  beyond. 

"  Do  you  know  what  that  is  ?  "  asked  Ned 
as  Laurence  rested  his  oar,  and  gazed  silent- 
ly up  at  the  gigantic  peak. 

"  No  ;  but  isn't  he  a  magnificent  fellow? 
He  looks  so  proud  and  grand,  and  yet  see 
the  flowers  lying  all  up  his  sides.  They  look 
as  if  they  had  thrown  themselves  there,  trust- 
ing to  his  strength  and  protection." 

"  Very  poetic,  I  don't  deny,"  said  Ned, 
with  a  mischievous  glance  at  his  friend. 
"  But  if  they  had  happened  to  throw  them- 
selves upon  the  other  side  of  their  grand  pro- 
tector, .they  would  have  found  that  he  was 


54  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


a  little  rough,  even  in  his  tenderest  moods. 
Give  another  look  at  him,  Larry.  He  is  an 
old  friend." 

"  Then  I  am  sorry  to  confess  that  I  have 
forgotten  him,"  replied  Larry,  after  striving 
in  vain  for  some  moments  to  recognize 
one  single  feature  in  the  picture  before 
him. 

"  It  is  Eagle  Crag." 

"  Nonsense!  "  said  Laurence,  looking  a  trifle 
vexed.  "  You  sold  me  there,"  he  added 
more  good-humoredly.  "  I  thought  it  was 
really  some  point  which  I  ought  to  have  rec- 
ollected." 

"  I  did  nothing  of  the  kind,"  said  Ned,  posi- 
tively. "  That  is  certainly  Eagle  Crag." 

"  Do  you  mean  to  say  that  it  is  the  Sea- 
ward Cliff,  as  Charles  Grant  calls  it?"  asked 
Laurence,  incredulously. 

"  Yes  :  listen  a  moment,  and  we  may  hear 
the  breakers  thundering  against  the  other 
side." 


EAGLE  CRAG.  55 


It  was  no  great  marvel  that  Laurence 
found  it  hard  to  believe  that  Ned  was  in 
earnest.  Eagle  Crag  was  no  new  spot  to 
him.  Often  and  often,  when  bent  on  some 
adventurous  frolic,  had  he  climbed  its  rocky 
sides,  pausing  now  and  then  to  look  down 
into  the  dark  blue  waves  which  dashed  so 
madly  against  its  base  ;  for  the  boys  of  Dray- 
ton  Hall  were  very  fond  of  showing  their 
skill  in  climbing  the  steep  and  dangerous 
footpaths  which  ran  from  the  foot  of  the  huge 
precipice  to  its  summit.  But  from  the  sea- 
ward side,  the  Crag  was  a  bold  rock,  rising 
perpendicularly  from  the  water,  lashed  furious- 
ly by  the  wild  waves  to  which  it  opposed  it- 
self, and  exposed  to  the  fiercest  blasts.  Even 
in  the  softest  days  of  summer,  it  was  a  wild, 
weird  spot;  and  it  was  difficult  indeed  to 
imagine  that  this  lovely  garden-like  slope 
could  be  a  part  of  that  grim  old  giant 
whose  face  wa*b  so  stern  and  hard.  Yet, 
listening,  his  ear  could  catch  the  roll  of  the 


56  ALLAN  EAYWOOD. 


breakers;  and  Ned  laughed  merrily  as  the 
astonished  face  was  turned  towards  him  as 
if  asking  for  an  explanation. 

"  The  lake  takes  a  complete  sweep,"  he 
said  in  answer  to  Laurence's  look  of  inquiry. 
"  We  are  directly  opposite  Drayton  ;  and  if 
we  had  a  good  glass  here,  we  could  see  all 
that  is  going  on  in  the  play-ground.  You 
know  that  the  Cliff  is  about  a  mile  south 
of  the  Hall,  and  this  is  its  farther  side.  All 
the  rough  winds  are  cut  off,  you  see,  from 
this  spot  ;  and  the  gruff  old  monster  changes 
into  a  blooming  maiden,  as  the  sentirnentals 
would  say.  The  wall  of  rock  which  forms 
the  old  fellow's  head-piece  cuts  off  completely 
all  communication  between  the  two  sides,  so 
that  we  have  many  an  opportunity  to  astonish 
those  of  our  visitors  who  have  first  seen  him 
from  the  sea.  But  now  I  suppose  that  we 
must  turn  toward  home,  or  Aunt  Milly  will 
be  agonized  by  our  tardiness.  I  wish  that 
the  Doctor  was  not  so  set  upon  having  us  at 


EAGLE  CRAG.  57 


the  Hall  on  Sundays.  Wouldn't  it  be  jolly 
to  stay  with  Mary  until  Monday  ?  " 

"  Yes  :  that  is  always  my  cry  when  Satur- 
day evening  comes.  But  I  suppose  we  must 
comfort  ourselves  with  thinking  of  the  many 
fellows  who  live  too  far  away  to  spend  even 
Saturday  at  home." 

So  the  boat  was  headed  round,  and  the 
two  rowers  bent  themselves  to  their  oars  with 
an  energy  which  brought  them  to  the  Manor 
House  in  time  to  prevent  any  extra  anxiety 
on  Miss  Millicent's  part. 

A  very  merry  party  it  was  that  drew  rein 
at  the  gates  of  Drayton  Hall  about  eight 
o'clock  that  Saturday  evening.  It  was  a 
magnificent  night.  The  moon  riding  in 
triumph  through  a  perfectly  cloudless  sky  lit 
up  the  scene  with  almost  the  brightness  of 
day,  and  the  air  was  so  fresh  and  cool  that 
the  riders  were  not  overheated,  although  the 
swift  pace  at  which  they  had  galloped  across 
the  country  might  have  served  to  call  all 


58  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


their  young  blood  into  action  ;  for  the  very 
horses  seemed  to  have  caught  the  infection 
of  their  gay  spirits  and  of  the  blithe  beauty 
of  the  night,  and  had  needed  neither  whip  nor 
spur  to  urge  them  on  their  way. 

"  I  wish  those  gray  old  walls  were  ten  miles 
farther  on,"  said  Ned,  as  the  eager  horses 
champed  their  bits,  and  tossed  their  heads, 
impatient  to  be  off  once  more.  "  I  don't 
want  to  go  in  any  more  than  the  horses 
do." 

"  Well,  what  must  be,  must,  I  suppose," 
said  Laurence  ;  "  and  it  is  after  eight  now. 
The  Doctor  will  look  black  if  we  are  late. 
We  must  say  good-night,  Miss  Churchill." 

"  Thomas  can  come  over  for  the  horses  on 
Monday,  Mary,"  said  Edward.  "  Thomas, 
take  good  care  of  Miss  Mary  :  don't  let  any 
harm  come  to  her  on  your  way  home." 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir.  I'll  do  the  best  I  can  for 
her,"  said  the  old  man,  shaking  his  head, 
which  had  grown  gray  in  the  Churchill  ser- 


EAGLE  CRAG.  59 


vice,  with  an  air  which  said  that  he  consid- 
ered the  caution  quite  superfluous. 

With  another  good-night,  and  a  promise 
of  meeting  at  church  on  the  morrow,  Mary 
rode  away  with  her  faithful  escort,  and  the 
boys  galloped  off  to  the  Hall  stables. 

"  Oh  !  if  you  fellows  haven't  missed  the 
biggest  row  we've  had  this  term  !  "  exclaimed 
Will  Seaton,  as  the  two  boys  entered  the 
study-hall,  which  on  Saturday  evenings  was 
the  scene  of  all  the  fun  and  jollity  which 
a  set  of  happy  school-boys  could  possibly 
originate.  "  You've  lost  the  best  joke 
going." 

"  What's  to  pay  ?  "  asked  Ned. 

"  Why,  in  the  first  place  we've  been  scared 
nearly  out  of  our  wits.  As  for  Haywood, 
he's  trembling  yet  with  fright.  Look  at  him  : 
he's  shaking  all  over." 

The  boys  glanced  toward  Allan,  who  was 
sitting  near,  leaning  back  in  his  chair,  shaking 
indeed,  but  with  repressed  laughter,  which 


60  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


broke  out  in  a  hearty  peal  as  they  turned 
their  amused  faces  towards  him. 

"  Let's  have  the  joke,  Will,"  said  Laurence. 
"  It  must  be  too  good  to  lose  if  it  rouses  our 
steady  old  Al  to  such  a  pitch." 

"  It  is  good,  and  no  mistake,"  said  Will. 
"  I  suppose  you  know,  in  the  first  place,  that 
our  learned  friend,  Roland  Bentley,  B.A., 
has  a  mortal  terror  of  cats." 

"  Yes  :  I  know  that." 

"  Well,  we  boys  were  all  here  about  an 
hour  ago,  enjoying  ourselves  one  way  and 
another,  when  all  of  a  sudden  there  rang 
through  the  hall  the  most  awful  shriek  you 
ever  heard  in  your  life.  I  was  up  on  the  table 
giving  the  fellows  Achilles  and  Hector  before 
Troy,  and  I  must  have  been  doing  it  pretty 
fairly  too,  for  they  were  laughing  fit  to  kill 
themselves  ;  but  I  tell  you  that  scream 
brought  me  up  short,  and  the  rest  of  them 
grew  still  in  a  jiffy.  Before  we  had  time  to 
think  what  it  was,  it  came  again  ;  and  then 


EAGLE  CRAG.  61 


we  flew,  the  whole  crowd  of  us,  out  into  the 
hall,  and  across  to  the  north  recitation-room. 
Just  as  we  tore  out,  the  Doctor  came  rushing 
down  the  stairs  like  mad.  He  reached  the 
door  first,  but  we  were  right  after  him,  and 
in  we  all  pelted  together,  master  and  man, 
mistress  and  servants,  teachers  and  taught, 
in  one  big  crowd  ;  for  the  whole  house  was 
roused  by  that  time.  Oh,  my!"  and  Will 
threw  himself  back  in  an  uncontrollable  fit  of 
laughter,  in  which  he  was  joined  by  every 
boy  in  the  room,  Ned  and  Laurence  heartily 
contributing  their  quota,  for  the  merriment 
was  infectious. 

"  Hurry  up,  Will.  Let's  know  what  it 
was,"  said  Ned,  as  soon  as  the  noise  sub- 
sided a  little. 

"  It  was  Bentley,  the  professor,"  gasped 
Will,  "  mounted  on  the  mantel-piece  ;  and 
on  the  rug  stood  a  cat  —  oh,  my!  —  a  mon- 
strous yellow  cat,  with  her  back  up  half  a 
mile  high,  her  tail  bristling,  and  her  eyes  like 


62  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


two  balls  of  fire,  spitting  and  snarling  at  him 
like  a  dragon.  As  we  rushed  in,  she  made 
one  spring  for  him,  —  I  do  believe  the  creat- 
ure thought  it  was  her  last  chance,  —  but 
she  only  caught  the  leg  of  his  pants,  and  fell 
back  without  doing  him  any  worse  damage 
than  tearing  a  hole  in  his  trousers  with  her 
teeth.  And  if  he  didn't  give  a  yell!  Oh,  it 
was  too  good!"  And  another  roar  of  laugh- 
ter made  the  walls  rins:  aofain. 

o       o 

"  Was  it  a  cat  belonging  to  the  house  ?  " 
asked  Laurence. 

"  Yes  :  it  seems  that  she  has  bothered  him 
quite  considerably  lately.  He  has  caught  her 
in  his  room  once  or  twice  ;  and  a  day  or  two 
ago,  finding  her  there,  he  soused  her  with 
cold  water.  She  turned  on  him  then,  but 
Arthur  was  at  hand,  and  he  drove  her  off. 
To-night,  the  first  thing  he  knew  of  her  being 
near  was  hearing  her  give  a  snarl,  and  feeling 
her  ugly  claws  on  his  neck,  for  she  sprang 
square  on  his  back.  Poor  fellow  !  I'm  sorry 


EAGLE  CRAG.  63 


for  him;  but  it's  the  tallest  joke  we've  had 
this  season.  By  the  way,  it  got  Al  into  an 
awful  mess  though  :  he's  got  a  hundred 
lines." 

"  What  for  ?  "  asked  Edward,  turning 
towards  Allan. 

"Why,  for  laughing  at  the  misfortunes  of 
his  betters.  You  never  heard  a  chap  roar  so  in 
your  life  :  it  seemed  as  if  he'd  go  into  fits  ;  and* 
as  bad  luck  would  have  it,  he  stood  close  to 
the  Doctor.  He  was  as  pale  as  any  girl  at  first, 
—  as  white  as  poor  Bentley  himself,  —  and 
then  he  began  to  laugh,  and  he  hasn't  stopped 
yet,  you  see.  Dr.  Drayton  spoke  to  him,  but 
he  couldn't  seem  to  help  it;  and,  after  a  min- 
ute, the  Doctor  ordered  us  all  out  of  the  room. 
Whereupon  Mr.  Bentley  remarked  that  Mr. 
Haywood  was  only  too  glad  of  an  oppor- 
tunity to  annoy  him  ;  and  Al,  not  recover- 
ing himself  even  then,  the  Doctor  ordered 
him  a  hundred  lines  as  a  sedative.  It 
doesn't  seem  to  work,  though,  as  far  as  I 


64  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


can  see  ;  "  and  "Will  glanced  mischievously 
at  Allan. 

"  Do  be  quiet,  old  fellow,"  said  Allan.  "  I 
believe  I  am  almost  broken  in  two  ;  "  and  he 
leaned  wearily  back  in  his  chair.  "  I  am 
going  off  by  myself,"  he  added,  after  a  mo- 
ment, "  to  do  my  lines.  I  shall  have  half  an 
hour  before  bed-time." 

He  gathered  up  the  books  and  papers  which 
were  strewn  around  him,  and  was  leaving 
the  room,  when  Ned  locked  his  arm  in  his, 
saying,  "  I  will  sit  with  you  ;  "  and  they  went 
out  together. 

"  I  am  sorry,"  said  Allan,  as  he  laid  his 
books  upon  a  desk  in  one  of  the  smaller  reci- 
tation-rooms, "  that  I  happened  to  be  the  one 
whose  amusement  was  particularly  noticed. 
Not  that  I  mind  the  lines  so  much,  but  the 
Bentleys  and  I  were  on  bad  enough  terms 
before  this;  and  it  will  only  make  matters 
worse  between  us.  I  don't  know  how  it  was, 
but  I  seemed  to  lose  all  control  of  myself. 


EAGLE  CRAG.  65 


I  would  have  given  any  thing  to  stop  merely 
for  my  own  sake,  but  I  could  not.  It  was  a 
most  ridiculous  scene." 

Ned  looked  anxiously  at  him  ;  for  his  voice 
was  weak,  and  his  utterance  somewhat  un- 
steady. His  face  was  very  pale  ;  but  as  he 
caught  Ned's  eye,  it  crimsoned,  and  he  broke 
out  again  with  another  burst  of  laughter. 

"  Allan,  you're  behaving  like  a  donkey," 
said  Ned. 

He  spoke  suddenly  and  sharply.  Allan 
glanced  at  him,  then  quieting  himself  with  a 
strong  effort,  turned  silently  to  his  translation. 
Ned  sat  by  reading,  apparently  absorbed  in 
his  book  ;  but  from  time  to  time  he  caught 
the  sound  of  a  smothered  laugh  from  Allan 
as  he  bent  over  his  lesson.  He  took  no 
notice,  however  ;  and  by  and  by  the  bell  rang 
for  prayers,  after  which  service  the  boys  all 
dispersed  to  their  dormitories. 


IV. 


AS  MEEK  AS  MOSES. 

"  A  LL AN ! "  exclaimed  Ned  Churchill, 
bursting  suddenly  into  the  room  where 
Allan  sat  working  diligently  at  his  translation 
before  school-hours  on  Monday  morning,  "is 
all  this  that  I  hear  about  you  and  Bentley 
true?" 

Allan  looked  quietly  up  into  Ned's  flushed 
and  angry  face.  "  What  have  you  heard  ?  " 
he  asked. 

"  That  Bentley  insulted  you;  told  you  that 
you  were  no  gentleman,  called  you  a  fool, 
and  I  don't  know  what  all  besides  ;  and  that 
you  stood  there,  and  bore  all  his  insolence 
without  a  word,  until  he  exhausted  his  vocab- 
ulary of  epithets,  and  then  told  him  that  you 


AS  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  67 


were  sorry  that  you  had  done  any  thing  to 
annoy  his  brother.  Is  it  possible,  Allan  Hay- 
wood,  that  you  are  such  a  mean  fellow  as 
that?" 

"  I  am  not  quite  ready,  Ned,  —  I  don't  sup- 
pose you  expect  me  to  be,  —  to  acknowledge 
myself  a  mean  fellow,"  said  Allan,  his  cheeks 
reddening  in  their  turn  as  he  spoke.  "  I  am 
quite  ready,  however,  to  acknowledge  the  fact 
of  having  apologized  to  Bentley  for  my  rude- 
ness to  the  professor  ;  but  I  did  so  before  his 
abuse,  not  after  it.  You  know  perfectly  well 
that  I  owed  them  an  apology,  and  if  I  had  not 
supposed  that  he  would  dislike  having  the 
matter  alluded  to,  I  should  have  spoken  to  the 
professor  himself.  I  tried  to  see  Bentley  on 
Sunday  ;  but  it  seems  he  was  away  some- 
where with  his  brother,  and  I  did  not  fall  in 
with  him  until  this  morning." 

"  I  don't  see  why  you  need  have  said  any 
thing  about  it,"  said  Ned,  as  hotly  as  before. 
"  Those  fellows  both  hate  you,  and  you  know 


68  ALLAN  HA7WOOD. 


it.  You  might  have  been  sure  that  you 
would  receive  nothing  but  impertinence  for 
your  pains." 

"  Perhaps  I  was  sure  of  it,  "  said  Allan  ; 
"but  that  made  no  difference  in  my  duty; 
even  my  best  friend  had  told  me  that  I  was 
behaving  like  a  donkey  ;  "  and  he  laid  his 
hand  on  Ned's  shoulder,  and  looked  at  him 
with  a  half  smile  as  he  spoke. 

But  Ned  did  not  return  the  smile.  He  had 
just  come  up  from  the  play-ground  where  a 
whole  troop  of  boys  were  discussing  the  scene 
which  had  taken  place  between  Allan  and 
Bentley  ;  and  though  every  one  among  them 
was  indignant  at  Arthur's  insolent  reception 
of  Allan's  apology,  they  were  all  quite  as 
much,  if  not  more,  vexed  with  Allan  for  his 
passive  endurance.  Ned,  who  had  not  been 
present,  had  heard  the  story  from  half  a 
dozen  excited  witnesses  ;  and  he  was  burning 
with  shame  and  anger  to  find  that  they  were 
all  inclined  to  think,  if  not  to  say,  that  the 


AS  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  69 


fear  of  Bentley's  strong  arm  had  much  to  do 
with  Hay  wood's  forbearance. 

"  I  know  I  said  that,"  he  answered,  with  a 
strong  touch  of  irritation  in  his  tone  ;  "  but  I 
thought  that  you  had  lost  all  control  of  your- 
self, and  "  — 

"  So  I  had,"  interrupted  Allan,  "  and  I  am 
much  obliged  to  you  for  putting  a  stop  to  my 
nonsense.  I  have  not  been  feeling  well  for 
some  days  ;  and  Saturday,  if  the  truth  must 
be  known,  I  was  more  than  half  sick  ;  and  I 
suppose  that  the  fright,  and  then  the  utter 
absurdity  of  that  performance,  must  have 
upset  me  completely.  I  tell  you  this,  Ned  ; 
but  I  would  not  have  the  other  boys  know  it 
for  a  kingdom.  You  will  understand  me, 
but  the  Bentleys  do  not;  and  they  have  some 
reason  for  their  ill-feeling." 

"  Nonsense,  Allan  !  one  would  think  it  was 
a  personal  matter.  Do  you  suppose  that  you 
were  the  only  fellow  in  the  school  who  laughed 
at  the  professor's  plight  ?  " 


70  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  No  ;  but  I  happened  to  be  singled  out  as 
the  worst  of  them  all  ;  and  I  do  not  doubt 
that  they  take  it  as  a  personal  affront.  Ar- 
thur's conduct  shows  that  plainly  enough." 

"  Well,  granted  that  it  is  so,  and  granted, 
too,  that  you  owed  him  an  apology:  that 
was  no  reason  why  you  should  have  borne 
Arthur's  insults  so  tamely.  Do  you  know 
what  the  fellows  are  saying,  Al  ?  " 

«  No." 

Perhaps  he  suspected  part  of  the  truth,  for 
his  face  lost  some  of  the  color  which  had 
glowed  in  it  before,  and  he  set  his  lips  firmly 
as  if  he  knew  that  there  was  something  com- 
ing which  would  be  hard  to  bear. 

"  They  say,"  said  Ned,  "  that  Bentley's 
strength  has  had  its  weight  with  you." 

Allan  stood  for  a  moment  looking  at  his 

O 

friend  with  flashing  eyes,  and  lips  that  worked 
strongly  and  passionately.  But  after  a  little 
his  face  regained  its  composure,  and  his  voice 
was  steady  and  controlled  as  he  said,  — 


AS  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  71 


"  Do  you  think  it  influenced  me,  Ned  ?  " 
"  No  :  of  course  I  don't.  I  know  it's  only 
that  ridiculous  notion  of  right  and  wrong 
which  you  will  persist  in  bringing  into  every 
thing.  But  a  fellow  ought  to  stand  up  for 
his  rights,  Allan.  Bentley  ought  to  have  been 
knocked  down  on  the  spot;  and  you  could 
have  done  it  too,  for  if  you're  not  very  strong, 
you're  quick  and  dexterous,  and  you  might 
have  pitched  him  over  in  no  time  :  you  would, 
at  least,  have  shown  that  you  wasn't  afraid 
of  him.  As  things  are  now,  the  fellows  all 
lean  to  his  side,  —  not  because  they  think  he's 
right,  but  because  you've  shown  so  little 
pluck.  There's  one  chance  for  you  though. 
Bentley  told  Will  Seaton  that  he  was  de- 
termined to  make  you  fight  ;  and  as  it  seemed 
that  he  hadn't  said  enough  yet,  he'd  try  it 
again.  Now,  Al,  if  he  does,  pitch  into 
him.  If  you  don't,  you'll  lose  caste  in  the 
school." 

"  Then  I  must  lose  caste,"  said  Allan,  with 


72  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


a  quiet  determination  which  drove  Ned  al- 
most frantic. 

"Do  you  mean  to  say  that  if  Bentley 
attacks  you  again,  you  will  not  fight?  " 

"  I  will  not  fight." 

"  Then  the  boys  are  right  :  you  must  be  a 
coward." 

He  did  not  look  it,  as,  drawing  up  his  tall 
figure  to  its  full  height,  Allan  moved  slightly 
to  one  side,  and  laid  his  hand  upon  the  door 
towards  which  Ned,  in  his  anger,  had  turned. 

"  Edward  Churchill,"  he  said  firmly,  "  you 
have  gone  farther  than  I  should  have  dared 
to  go  with  you,  far  as  I  would  trust  your 
love.  I  will  not  fight,  save  in  self-defence  ; 
but  neither  will  I  allow  any  one,  not  even 
you,  to  call  me  a  coward.  It  is  a  shameful 
name,  and  one  which  you  know  that  I  have 
never  deserved." 

He  did  know,  right  well,  that  the  taunt 
was  undeserved.  The  calm,  resolute  voice 
had,  in  some  measure,  cooled  his  anger  ;  and 


AB  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  73 


looking  into  the  manly  face  which  confronted 
him  so  steadily,  he  could  not  but  take  back 
the  cruel  word. 

"  I  was  wrong.  I  am  very  sorry,"  he  said 
hastily,  holding  out  his  hand,  which  Allan 
grasped  warmly.  "But,  Al,  there  must  be 
something  done.  I  cannot  and  will  not  bear 
to  have  you  compared  with  that  miserable 
Bentley  to  your  disadvantage.  The  boys  are 
declaring  that  you'll  have  to  fight  him,  and 
there  will  be  no  end  to  their  sneers  if  you  re- 
fuse him  again.  Why,  already  Will  has 
started  them  all  off  on  couplets  such  as, 

'  Our  old  Al  is  meek  as  Moses, 
Soft  as  mush,  and  sweet  as  roses  !  '  " 

"  Will's  poetic  fancies  won't  hurt  me,"  said 
Allan,  smiling.  "  He  has  challenged  me  be- 
fore, and  had  to  own  himself  beaten  in  the 
encounter." 

"  Then  you  are  determined  not  to  stand  up 
for  your  rights." 

"  When  my  rights  are  touched,  Ned,  you 


74  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


shall  see  whether  I  submit  tamely;  but  as 
yet  they  have  not  been  injured.  Only  /can 
touch  my  right  to  the  name  of  a  gentleman. 
The  fact  that  Bentley  has  denied  it  to  me 
does  not  take  it  from  me  ;  and  it  lies  with  me 
also  to  prove  whether  I  am  a  fool  or  not. 
But  I  tell  you  all,  that  when  I  let  a  bully 
drive  me  into  a  fight,  against  my  better  judg- 
ment, by  the  mere  force  of  persistent  abuse 
and  impertinence,  you  may  call  me  a  fool, 
and  I  shall  not  dare  to  resent  it.  As  for 
Will,  his  bark  is  a  good  deal  worse  than  his 
bite.  I  don't  think  I  shall  prove  to  be  either 
'  soft  as  mush,'  or  '  sweet  as  roses  ;  '  and  I  think 
if  we  all  understood  the  real  meaning  of  that 
word  '  meek,'  we  should  not  consider  it  very 
much  of  a  slight  to  be  compared  to  Moses." 

"  What  do  you  call  the  real  meaning  of  the 
word?  I  should  think  it  was  very  easy  to 
be  understood." 

"  And  you  consider  a  meek  man  or  boy 
a  fellow  who  will  let  the  world  ride  over  him 


.45  MEEK  AS   MOSES.  75 


rough-shod,  and  then  get  up  and  ma«;e  an 
humble  bow  to  the  riders.  Isn't  that  BO, 
Ned  ?  " 

"  Yes,  very  much  so,"  said  Ned. 

"  Yet  it  is  said,  '  The  man  Moses  was  very 
meek,  above  all  the  men  which  were  upon 
the  face  of  the  earth  ;  '  and  surely  a  braver, 
nobler  fellow  never  lived.  It  didn't  look 
much  like  letting  the  world  ride  over  him 
rough-shod,  when  he  stood  before  the  king, 
threatening  him  with  the  wrath  of  God  ;  and 
sternly  ordering  him  to  let  the  children  of 
Israel  go  that  they  might  serve  the  Lord  ; 
nor  when  he  stood  on  the  borders  of  the  sea 
with  his  rod  stretched  out  to  call  the  floods 
back  upon  the  Egyptians;  and  neither 
Amalek,  nor  the  Canaanites,  nor  Korah 
found  him  very  easy  to  manage.  Yet  he 
did  not  think  it  worth  his  while  to  answer 
the  Hebrew  who  taunted  him  with  having 
taken  vengeance  on  the  cruel  task-master, 
nor  to  denounce  Aaron  and  Miriam  for  their 


76  ALLAN  HAY  WO  OD. 


sedition.  And  there  was  another,  Ned,  '  who 
when  He  was  reviled,  reviled  not  again,' 
whose  brave,  grand  heart  was  gentle  and 
tender,  and  whose  lips  -  -  the  very  lips 
which  boldly  asserted  His  right  to  rule 
as  a  king  —  breathed  a  special  blessing  on 
the  meek." 

"Well,  well,"  said  Ned,  slowly,  "I'm 
beaten  if  we  are  to  have  a  long  talk  about 
it,  for  you  always  get  the  best  of  me  in 
a  discussion.  Hark!  there's  the  bell. 
We  must  be  off.  Hallo  !  there  go  your 
papers." 

As  he  spoke,  he  stooped  to  pick  up  the  papers 
which  had  slipped  from  Allan's  book  ;  but 
before  he  could  touch  them,  his  companion 
sprang  forward,  and  snatched  them  up,  glanc- 
ing as  he  did  so  into  Ned's  face  with  an  anx- 
ious, questioning  look. 

"  What's  the  matter?  "  asked  Churchill  in 
surprise. 

"I  —  I  —  nothing,"     stammered     Allan. 


AS  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  77 


"  Come,  we  will  be  late,''  and  he  drew  him 
from  the  room  ;  but  as  they  left  it,  Churchill 
noticed  that  he  turned,  and  looked  carefully 
around  as  if  to  make  sure  that  nothing  re- 
mained behind. 

"What's  wrong,  Allan  ?"  he  said.  "You 
have  your  translation,  haven't  you?  " 

"  My  translation  ?  Yes,  I  believe  so,"  he 
answered  hesitatingly. 

"  Aren't  you  sure  ?  Open  the  book  and 
look  ;  "  and  he  laid  his  hand  on  the  Euripides 
which  Allan  held  in  his  arm,  but  his  friend 
almost  snatched  it  from  his  grasp. 

"No  matter  —  no  matter  —  it  is  there  — 
yes,  I  am  sure  it  is  there  ;  "  and  turning  hasti- 
ly away,  he  entered  the  school-room  a  little  in 
advance  of  him. 

"  What  is  to  pay  with  that  boy  ?  "  thought 
Ned;  but  the  nekt  moment  the  bell  was 
tapped,  and  his  lessons  soon  drove  the  little 
incident  from  his  mind. 

The  moment  Allan  joined  his  companions, 


78  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


he  began  to  see  that  Ned's  warning  had  not 
been  superfluous.  As  he  passed  Will  Sea- 
ton's  desk,  a  whispered  "  Meek  as  Moses  " 
met  his  ear  ;  and  before  he  reached  his  own 
seat,  the  whisper  had  deepened  into  a  mur- 
mur, which  was  suddenly  stilled  by  a  loud 
rap  upon  the  Master's  desk.  The  words  had, 
of  course,  not  been  taken  up  by  the  older  and 
less  mischievous  boys  of  his  own  class  ;  but 
even  there  he  failed  to  meet  his  usual  wel- 
come. Not  a  syllable  was  spoken  on  the 
subject,  but  there  was  a  nameless  something 
in  their  looks  and  manner  that  he  felt,  al- 
though he  could  hardly  have  told  in  what 

O  •/ 

way  the  unusual  want  of  friendliness  was 
manifested.  Sensitive  as  a  girl,  this  coldness 
cut  sharply  into  a  heart  which  had  already 
that  morning  been  deeply  wounded  by  the 
one  it  most  loved  and  trusted  ;  but  no  one 
who  looked  on  his  calm,  composed  face  would 
have  suspected  the  pain  which  lay  hidden  be- 
hind that  veil.  The  slow  morning  lagged 


AS  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  79 


wearily  away,  until  at  length  the  hour  for 
which  he  had  been  longing  struck.  Twelve 
o'clock  !  For  one  half  hour,  at  least,  he  could 
escape  the  hundreds  of  quizzical  eyes,  the 
mocking  lips,  the  sneers,  half  laughing,  half 
earnest,  which  met  him  at  every  turn.  Taking 
up  his  Euripides  once  more  (for  his  transla- 
tion was  not  quite  completed),  he  passed 
through  the  crowd  which  was  rushing  from 
the  Hall  for  the  half-hour's  recess,  and  made 
his  way  to  a  little  arbor  at  the  foot  of  the 
lawn,  where  he  hoped  to  finish  his  work  in 
peace.  As  he  entered,  he  saw  that  it  was 
already  occupied,  and  drawing  quickly  back, 
without  waiting  to  see  who  had  been  before- 
hand with  him,  he  was  turning  away  when 
Laurence  Bronson's  voice  checked  him. 
"  Come  in,  Al,  —  come  in.  I  am  only  read- 

ing." 

They  were  the  first  pleasant  words  which 
had  been  spoken  to  him  since  his  encounter 
with  Bentley. 


80  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


'•  Thank  you,"  he  said  cordially.  "  I  am 
glad  to  have  a  welcome  at  last.  The  whole 
school  has  sent  me  to  Coventry  this  morn- 
ing." 

"  I  see  they  have,  and  it  is  a  shame,"  said 
Laurence,  warmly.  "  By  the  way,  Al,  what 
has  set  the  Bentleys  against  you  so  strong- 
ly?» 

"  I  can't  answer  the  question  with  regard 
to  Arthur,"  said  Allan,  throwing  himself  down 
on  the  bench  beside  Bronson.  "  He  always 
did  seem  to  dislike  me  from  the  first.  But 
the  professor  and  I  agreed  well  enough  until 
last  year,  when  I  took  the  prize  for  composi- 
tion. Arthur  had  been  working  for  it  as  hard 
as  I,  and  they  were  both  very  angry  that  he 
missed  it.  Since  then  the  professor  has  been 
less  than  civil  to  me,  and  Arthur  is  still 
worse." 

"  Let  him  do  arid  say  what  he  likes,"  said 
Laurence,  indifferently.  "  This  little  breeze 
will  blow  over  directly,  and  you  will  be  all 


AB  MEEK  AS  MOSES.  81 


right  ;  but  I'm  sorry  you  didn't  thrash  him  in 
the  beginning." 

"  I  am  not,"  said  Allan  ;  "  and  they  shall 
not  force  me  to  it,  if  they  keep  me  in  Coventry 
for  the  rest  of  the  year." 

"  What's  that  ?  "  said  Laurence,  as  the 
school-bell  rang  out  loud  and  clear.  "  Our 
time  isn't  half  up.  We've  had  only  ten 
minutes,"  he  added,  glancing  at  his  watch. 
"  What's  up,  I  wonder  ?  " 

"  There  must  be  something  wrong,"  said 
Allan,  as  they  left  the  arbor  together. 

A  crowd  of  boys,  all  eagerly  asking  why 
their  recess  had  been  cut  so  short,  came 
swarming  up  the  various  roads  to  the  house  ; 
some  laughing,  some  scolding,  all  curious  to 
learn  the  cause  of  this  unusual  occurrence  ; 
for  those  who  had  been  Dray  ton  boys  for  years 
never  remembered  having  had  the  time- 
honored  mid-day  playtime  broken  into  in  this 
summary  fashion. 

As  Laurence  and  Allan  joined  the  noisy 
6 


82  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


throng,  Arthur  Bentley  and  Will  Seaton  came 
up  from  a  side-road,  and  threw  themselves 
into  the  stream  a  little  behind  them.  The 
next  moment,  Will's  quick  eye  had  noted 
Allan,  and  he  pointed  him  out  to  Arthur. 

"  There's  Al,"  he  said.  "  Let's  have  some 
fun  out  of  him  before  we  get  to  the  Hall." 

The  hint  was  taken  at  once.  It  was  the 
very  chance  that  Arthur  had  been  seeking,  an 
opportunity  to  insult  him  again  before  the 
school,  and  to  accomplish  another  purpose 
which  he  never  would  have  dared  to  confess 
to  Will. 

Stepping  up  to  his  side,  he  said  insolently, 
"  Well,  Miss  Haywood,  so  you  are  under 
Mr.  Bronson's  protection,  eh?  What  book 
have  you  got  there  ?  " 

Laurence  turned  sharply  round  ;  but  Hay- 
wood,  saying  quietly,  "Don't  notice  him, 
Laurence,"  drew  him  on  toward  the  Hall. 

"Stop!  I  want  to  see  that  book,"  said 
Arthur,  in  the  same  imperious  tone;  and 


AS  MEEK  A3  MOSES  83 


placing  himself  directly  in  Allan's  path,  he 
laid  his  hand  upon  the  book,  and  drew  it 
from  his  arm.  For  one  instant  Allan  stood 
and  looked  at  him,  as,  with  apparent  care- 
lessness, he  flirted  the  leaves  of  the  Euripides  ; 
but  the  next  moment  he  had  stepped  forward, 
seized  him  by  the  collar  and  waistband,  and, 
by  a  dexterous  movement,  lifted  him  out  of 
his  path,  and  set  him  down  upon  the  road  be- 
hind him.  A  wild  shout  of  delight,  mixed 
with  vociferous  cries  of  "  Hurra  for  old  Al  !  " 
"  I  knew  he'd  come  out  all  right  !  "  "  How 
are  you  now,  Bentley  ?  "  &c.,  followed  Allan's 
unlooked-for  exploit  ;  while  Laurence,  laugh- 
ing heartily  at  Arthur's  overthrow,  bent  to 
pick  up  the  fallen  book,  and  the  scattered 
papers  which  had  dropped  from  it. 

"  You  seem  to  have  plenty  of  manuscript 
here,"  he  said  as  he  handed  it  to  Allan. 
"  Does  all  this  scribbling  belong  to  you  ?  " 
and  he  stretched  out  his  hand  filled  with 
papers  written  in  pencil. 


84  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


Allan  grasped  them  hurriedly.  "  Yes,  yes  ! 
they  are  mine.  Are  you  sure  you  picked 
them  all  up?  "  and  he  looked  about  upon 
the  road  where  the  book  had  dropped  as  it 
fell  from  Arthur's  hand,  with  a  nervous,  un- 
easy glance. 

"  Yes  :  I  gathered  them  together,  every  one 
of  them.  What's  the  matter  now?"  for 
Allan  had  seized  his  arm  with  a  grip  which 
fairly  pained  him.  "  Are  you  sick?"  he 
asked  anxiously,  seeing  that  the  boy  was 
deadly  pale. 

A  spasm  passed  over  Allan's  face  :  he  bent 
himself  almost  double,  as  if  convulsed  with 
agony  ;  but  the  next  moment  he  raised  his 
face,  now  flushed  and  burning,  and  loosed  his 
hold  on  Laurence's  arm. 

"  A  sudden  pain,  that  was  all,"  he  said 
feebly.  "  Don't  speak  of  it  before  those  fel- 
lows. Bentley  was  rather  too  heavy  for  me. 
Come,  we  must  go  on  ;  "  and  they  joined 
their  comrades. 


MEEK  AS  MOSES.  85 


The  crowd  was  still  pouring  into  the  Hall, 
their  interest  in  the  question  of  their  recal 
divided  now  with  their  delight  in  Bentley's 
discomfiture  and  Allan's  self-assertion. 


V 


THE  PARODY. 

"DUT  all  discussion  and  debate  were 
hushed,  as  the  boys  re-entered  the  long 
school-room,  and  found  that  Dr.  Drayton  him- 
self stood  in  the  Master's  desk,  —  a  circum- 
stance, in  itself,  as  unusual  as  the  short  re- 
cess. As  one  after  another  caught  sight  of 
the  tall,  gaunt  form  standing  erect,  with  heavy 
brows  bent  almost  threateningly  on  the  va- 
rious groups  pressing  in  through  the  open 
door,  the  news  spread  that  the  Doctor  was 
there,  and  the  boys  came  in  more  quietly  ; 
for  the  Doctor,  if  he  were  not  much  loved, 
was  at  least  held  in  great  reverence  by  his 
scholars.  His  face  was  one  to  win  more  of 
respect  than  of  affection.  The  lines  about 


THE  PARODY,  87 


the  large  mouth  were  hard  and  stern  ;  the 
dark  gray  eyes  were  keen  and  piercing;  and 
the  high,  intellectual  forehead  could  frown 
terribly,  if  need  were.  And  need  there 
seemed  to  be  this  morning,  for  it  was  drawn 
in  lines  of  severity  such  as  the  boys  had  not 
seen  in  many  a  long  day. 

"  Young  gentlemen  !  "  —  How  loud  and 
clear  his  voice  rang  out!  Evidently  he  in- 
tended to  nail  the  attention  of  every  one  in 
the  room,  in  any  part  of  which  one  might 
have  heard  a  pin  drop,  so  perfect  was  the 
stillness.  —  "  Young  gentlemen,  I  have  called 
you  in  at  this  early  hour,  because  I  wish  to 
ascertain  without  a  moment's  unnecessary 
delay  who  was  the  originator  of  a  most  mean 
and  dastardly  trick  which  has  been  perpetrated 
upon  Professor  Bentley.  One  of  the  actors 
in  the  farce  is  known  ;  the  others,  if  others 
there  be,  are  yet  unknown  :  but  as  soon  as 
they  are  discovered,  they  shall  be  expelled 
from  my  school.  Many  of  you,  doubtless,  are 


ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


ignorant  of  the  circumstances  to  which  I 
allude.  They  are  these.  Some  persons,  and 
among  them  some  of  the  best  and  bravest 
men  that  ever  lived,  are  tormented  with  an 
aversion  —  a  terror,  I  may  call  it  —  of  some 
particular  object  ;  and  you  all  know,  from  ex- 
perience, that  Professor  Bentley  suffers  from 
such  a  dread.  An  insulting  parody  which  I 
hold  in  my  hand  has  been  written  by  one 
of  your  comrades,  and  was  to-day  posted  up 
on  the  Professor's  door,  to  the  handle  of  which 
a  cat  was  tied  by  a  string.  Fortunately,  the 
plot  was  discovered  before  Mr.  Bentley  had 
occasion  to  go  to  his  room.  If  the  perpetrat- 
ors of  this  outrage  choose  to  confess  their 
guilt,  they  will  save  me  much  trouble  ;  for  I 
am  determined  that  they  shall  not  escape,  and 
I  will  ferret  out  the  whole  matter,  if  I  spend 
months  in  the  work." 

The  Doctor's  speech  was  followed  by  the 
most  perfect  silence.  The  boys  looked  from 
one  to  the  other  in  amazed  inquiry,  but  not 


THE  PARODY.  89 


a  whisper  or  a  movement  was  heard.  Dr. 
Drayton  stood  frowning  down  upon  them, 
watching  intently  for  some  sign  of  guilt  ;  but  he 
saw  nothing  to  lead  him  to  suspect  any  one. 
After  a  few  moments'  angry  survey  of  the 
hundreds  of  young  faces  before  him,  he  spoke 
again. 

"  The  author  of  these  lines  will  be  kind 
enough  to  corne  forward,  and  relieve  me  of 
them." 

There  was  another  silence,  deeper  than  the 
first.  The  Doctor's  face  was  turned  towards 
the  long  row  of  desks,  behind  which  sat  the 
senior  class  of  the  school  ;  but  every  boy 
there  returned  his  scrutinizing  look  honest- 
ly and  fairly. 

"  Allan  Hay  wood,  stand  forward  !  " 

Allan  started,  as  well  he  might;  for  the 
Doctor's  voice  was  awful  in  its  wrath.  He 
rose  instantly,  however  ;  and,  passing  round  the 
end  of  the  seat,  came  out  and  stood  in  the 
centre  of  the  floor,  with  every  eye  fixed  on  him. 


90  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  Why  did  you  not  claim  your  property, 
sir?"  asked  Dr.  Drayton,  sternly. 

"  Because  I  see  none  to  claim,  sir,"  replied 
Allan  steadily.  "  If  you  allude  to  that  paper 
in  your  hand,  I  have  never  seen  it  until 
now." 

"  Do  you  deny  your  own  handwriting  ?  " 
asked  the  Doctor.  "  Have  a  care,  Haywood. 
I  thought  you  far  above  any  such  heartless 
trickery  as  this.  Do  not  make  me  think  you 
false,  as  well  as  cruelly  revengeful." 

"  You  shall  have  no  cause  to  think  me 
either  false  or  "  —  but  there  he  paused. 

Dr.  Drayton  had  taken  a  step  forward,  and 
laid  before  him  the  paper.  If  he  knew  his 
own  penmanship,  which  was  somewhat  pe- 
culiar in  its  characteristics,  the  lines  were 
his.  He  stood  looking  at  them  for  a  moment, 

the  same  unbroken  stillness  reigning  around 

• 
him;  then  he  raised  his  head,  and  said,  — 

"  I  do  not  understand  this.  I  own  that 
this  handwriting  is  wonderfully  like  my  own, 


THE  PARODY.  91 


but  my  own  it  is  not.  Mr.  Bentley  and  I 
have  not  been  on  the  best  of  terms  ;  but  I  am 
sorry  that  Dr.  Drayton  does  not  know  me 
better  than  to  think  me  capable  of  such  a 
malicious  trick  as  has  been  played  upon  him. 
I  deny  it,  wholly  and  entirely  ;"  and  he  looked 
frankly  up  into  the  face  of  his  master. 

Dr.  Drayton  eyed  him  searchingly,  doubt- 
ful whether  to  trust  the  evidence  of  his  own 
senses,  or  the  honest,  manly  face  which  con- 
fronted him.  Apparently  he  chose  the  latter; 
for  bidding  Allan  return  to  bis  seat,  he 
stepped  back  into  the  desk,  and  again  ad- 
dressed the  school. 

"  You  have  all  heard,"  he  said  more  calmly 
than  he  had  before  spoken,  "  Allan  Hay- 
wood's  strong  denial  of  the  charge  brought 
against  him.  Circumstances  seem  to  point 
him  out  so  undeniably  as  the  author  of  these 
lines  that  I  could  not  question  his  guilt  ;  but  he 
repels  the  accusation  so  stoutly,  that  I  must, 
at  least,  give  him  the  benefit  of  the  doubt.  I 


92  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


am  however,  as  I  said  before,  determined  to 
sift  this  matter  to  the  bottom.  Except  the 
evidence  of  this  handwriting,  I  have  no  clew 
whatever  to  the  perpetrators  ;  and  I  see  no 
course  open  to  me,  except  one  which  I  know 
must  be  extremely  distasteful  to  you  all. 
Nevertheless,  I  shall  pursue  it.  Every  desk 
and  room  in  this  establishment  shall  be 
searched,  in  the  hope  that  we  may  obtain 
some  clew  to  the  author  of  this  parody." 

A  murmur  of  disapprobation  ran  through 
the  room.  Such  a  thing  had  never  been 
done  before  at  Drayton  Hall  ;  and  more  than 
one  eye  flashed,  as  the  boys  looked  first  at 
one  another,  and  then  at  the  masters  who  sat 
in  a  row  on  either  side  of  the  Doctor's  desk. 
The  murmur  grew  louder  and  stronger,  but 
Dr.  Drayton  soon  stilled  it. 

«  Silence  !  " 

The  stentorian  voice  drowned  for  the  mo- 
ment every  other  sound  ;  and  when  its  echoes 
died  away,  the  room  was  quiet  as  the  grave, 


TEE  PARODY. 


although  the  extreme  unpopularity  of  the 
measure  was  plainly  discernible  in  many  a 
dark  and  angry  face. 

"  The  search  will  be  begun  here,  and  at 
once.  Mr.  Acton  will  take  the  senior  class, 
Mr.  Moore  the  second,  and  so  on.  Gentle- 
men, the  sooner  this  disagreeable  business  is 
over,  the  better." 

The  under-masters  rose  to  perform  their 
unwelcome  duty,  with  as  much  apparent  un- 
willingness as  the  boys  .could  have  desired; 
and  Mr.  Acton  approached  the  desks  of  the 
senior  class. 

Arthur  Bentley,  Laurence  Bronson,  Ed- 
ward Churchill,  and  Allan  Haywood  sat  side 
by  side  at  the  upper  end  of  the  long  row,  Ar- 
thur's desk  being  the  one  nearest  the  head- 
master's seat.  Not  a  boy  in  the  room  stirred 
to  open  his  desk,  or  to  aid  in  any  way  the 
hateful  search  ;  but  the  masters  passed  on 
resolutely  in  their  task.  Mr.  Acton  had 
opened  the  three  first  desks,  glanced  over 


94  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


their  contents,  and  closed  them  again,  and  had 
laid  his  hand  upon  Allan's,  when  his  eye  fell 
on  a  book  lying  upon  the  lid,  from  the  leaves 
of  which  appeared  the  edges  of  some  papers 
which  had  evidently  been  thrust  in  hurriedly. 

"  What  papers  are  these  ?  "  he  asked,  lay- 
ing his  hand  upon  the  book. 

Allan  started,  and  reached  quickly  forward 
to  grasp  it;  but  the  master  drew  it  from 
him. 

"  What  papers  are  these  ?  "  he  asked  again, 
very  sternly,  for  the  boy's  manner  had  made 
him  suspect  that  something  was  wrong. 

"  It  is  my  translation  —  at  least  —  at  least 
—  don't  read  them,  Mr.  Acton.  They  have 
nothing  to  do  with  the  parody  ;  "  and  Allan 
looked  entreatingly  into  the  master's  grave 
face. 

But  Mr.  Acton  had  opened  the  book,  and 
taking  from  it  a  folded  sheet  of  foolscap, 
glanced  over  it,  his  countenance  darkening 
more  and  more;  while  Allan  watched  him 


THE  PARODY.  95 


closely,  his  color  coming  and  going  painfully. 
in  a  moment,  Mr.  Acton  had  raised  his  head, 
and  with  a  look  of  scorn,  which  Haywood 
totally  misunderstood,  turned  from  him  to- 
wards Dr.  Drayton.  But  Allan  stopped  him. 

"  Mr.  Acton,"  he  said  earnestly,  "  don't 
take  those  lines  to  the  Doctor  :  they  concern 
no  one  but  myself." 

"  Allow  me  to  judge  of  that,  sir,"  was  the 
severely  spoken  response  ;  and  pushing  aside 
his  detaining  hand,  Mr.  Acton  walked  up  to 
the  platform. 

Every  eye  in  the  immense  room  was  upon 
him,  for  this  little  interruption  to  the  proceed- 
ings had  attracted  universal  attention.  With- 
out a  word,  he  laid  the  paper  in  Dr.  Drayton's 
hand.  The  Doctor  scanned  it  closely.  His 
brow  contracted  angrily,  and  springing  to  his 
feet,  his  voice  rang  through  the  room  again, 
more  sharply  than  before. 

"  The  search  may  cease.  The  culprit  is 
found.  Allan  Haywood!" 


96  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


The  boy  rose  from  his  seat,  wondering 
what  those  few  lines  which  he  had  so  assid- 
uously hidden  from  every  one  should  have 
to  do  with  the  matter  in  hand. 

"  Take  your  stand  here,  sir  ;  "  and  the  Doc- 
tor motioned  him  to  the  platform  where  the 
whole  school  would  have  a  full  view  of  him. 

Allan  took  the  position  assigned  him,  and 
looking  up,  met  the  many  pairs  of  eager  eyes 
unflinchingly.  Why  should  he  not  meet 
them?  He  had  done  nothing  which  should 
make  him  quail  before  them.  And  so  he 
stood  there,  —  again  suspected,  he  knew  not 
why,  but  quite  determined  to  stand  his 
ground,  —  boldly  facing  his  wondering  com- 
rades. 

"  May  I  ask  you,  Mr.  Haywood,"  said  Dr. 
Drayton,  in  a  tone  of  utter  contempt,  "  why 
you  objected  to  Mr.  Acton's  seeing  this 
paper  ?  " 

A  few  moments  before,  Allan  would  have 
been  all  blushes  and  confusion  at  the  mere 


THE  PARODY.  97 


mention  of  that  paper  ;  but  now  he  saw  that 
his  justification  or  condemnation  was  in  some 
way  connected  with  it,  and  he  answered,  with 
a  somewhat  heightened  color,  but  quite 
steadily,  — 

"  Because,  sir,  it  concerns  myself  alone. 
It  is  an  entirely  private  matter." 

"  Suppose  you  let  the  school  judge  of  that. 
Read  it  aloud." 

Now  indeed  he  faltered.  The  Doctor  placed 
it  in  his  hand,  but  he  did  not  open  it  :  he 
only  looked  imploringly  into  the  hard,  cold 
face  above  him. 

"  I  cannot  read  it  aloud,"  he  said.  "  You 
do  not  know  what  you  ask  of  me." 

"  I  do  know  what  I  ask.  Will  you  obey 
me?" 

"  I  cannot  read  those  lines  before  the 
school." 

For  a  moment  the  Doctor  looked  at  him 
as  he  stood  there,  very  pale  now,  but  firm  as 


98  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


a  rock,  evidently  uncertain  how  to  proceed. 
At  length  he  said,  — 

«  Then  I  shall  read  it  myself." 

"  I  beg  you  not  to,"  urged  Allan  in  a  low 
voice;  "at  least,  not  while  I  stand  here." 

He  paid  no  heed  to  the  beseeching  words, 
but  spreading  the  sheet  out  upon  the  desk, 
said,  — 

"  Young  gentlemen,  you  heard  Mr.  Hay- 
wood's  denial  of  the  authorship  of  the  parody 
which  was  written  in  mockery  of  Mr.  Bent- 
ley.  Here  is  a  rough  pencil  draft  which  he 
does  not  deny.  The  school  shall  judge 
whether  or  not  the  honor  of  the  conception 
belongs  to  him." 

Allan  had  turned  a  little  from  the  front  ol 
the  platform,  and  his  head  was  bent  slightly 
forward  so  as  to  hide  his  face.  But  as  the 
Doctor  began  to  read  in  his  heavy,  sonorous 
voice,  he  raised  himself,  and  watched  him 
with  astonishment  written  over  every  line  of 
his  countenance.  For  the  words  he  heard 


THE  PARODY.  99 


were  not  the  simple  but  earnest  longings  of 
his  own  heart,  which  he  had  treasured  so 
secretly. 

"  To  the  Professor's  room  a  cat  drew  nigh,"  — 

read  the  Doctor. 

Allan  stood  up  bravely  and  strongly  now, 
listening  with  an  interest  whose  source  was 
wholly  changed. 

"  Her  long  black  whiskers  nodded  from  on  high  ; 
Her  teeth  shone  white  ;  her  sharp,  unsparing  claws 
Were  but  half  hidden  'neath  her  furry  paws  ; 
And  from  her  eyes  fierce,  fiery  splendors  shone, 
Like  Jove's  own  lightning,  or  the  rising  sun. 
As  Bentley  sees,  unusual  terrors  rise  : 
Struck  by  some  god,  he  fears,  recedes,  and  flies  ; 
He  leaves  the  door,  he  leaves  the  walls  behind  : 
And  Pussy  follows  like  the  winged  wind. 
Thus  at  the  panting  dove,  the  falcon  flies. 
The  poor  Professor  screamed  and  shut  his  eyes. 
On,  on  they  passed,  one  chasing,  one  in  flight  ; 
(The  mighty  fled,  pursued  by  feline  might). 
Swift  was  the  course  ;  no  vulgar  prize  they  play, 
No  vulgar  victim  must  reward  the  day, 
Such  as  in  school-rooms  crown  the  unequal  strife  ; 
The  prize  contended  was  our  poor  Prof.'s  life. 
At  last,  in  terror  wild,  —  as  if  he'd  wings,  — 
On  the  high  mantel  the  Professor  springs; 


100  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


And  raging  pussy,  balked  of  her  rich  prey, 
Stands  on  the  rug,  and  spitting  waits  her  day. 
Meantime  Prof.,  yelling  with  tremendous  might, 
Calls  all  the  school  to  see  the  jolly  sight  ; 
And  pussy,  thinking  this  her  latest  chance, 
Before  the  fire  begins  a  warlike  dance. 
Upward  she  makes  a  spring  !  oh,  how  he  roars 
As  through  his  pantaloons  she  puts  her  claws  ! 
O  pussy,  shame  to  beat  so  small  a  foe  ! 
How  can  you  treat  our  poor  Professor  so  ? 
Unequal  warfare  is  not  brave  nor  wise  : 
Why  don't  you  fight  a  cat  of  your  own  size  ?  " 

The  Doctor  ceased  reading,  and  to  his 
utter  surprise,  on  turning  his  eyes  on  Allan, 
found  him  standing  erect  before  him,  return- 
ing his  gaze  fearlessly. 

"  What  have  you  to  say  for  yourself,  sir, 
in  justification  of  such  unbounded  imper- 
tinence as  this  ;  and  of  the  unblushing  false- 
hood with  which  you  attempted  to  deceive 
me,  and  —  I  regret  to  say  —  did  deceive  me  a 
few  moments  since  ?  " 

"  I  have  to  say,  sir,  that  I  am  guilty  neither 
of  the  falsehood,  nor  of  the  impertinence," 
replied  Allan,  firmly. 


THE  PARODY.  101 


"  And  I  have  to  say  in  my  turn,"  said  the 
Doctor,  goaded  almost  to  fury  by  the  boy's 
calm  manner,  "  that  you  are  proved  guilty  of 
both.  The  first  fault  I  determined  to  punish 
by  expulsion  from  the  school  ;  but  the  second 
—  the  audacious,  cool  falsehoods  which  you 
persist  in  maintaining,  in  spite  of  the  proofs 
given  by  your  own  acknowledged  handwrit- 
ing, by  this  copy  of  the  Iliad  just  now  taken 
from  your  desk  by  a  person  whom  I  told  to 
search  it,  and  by  your  guilty  manner  when 
this  rough  draft  was  discovered  —  is  doubly 
worthy  of  the  punishment.  You  are  hereby 
expelled  from  Dray  ton  Hall.  You  will  re- 
turn to  your  guardian  this  afternoon.  In  the 
mean  time,  you  may  leave  this  room  at  once, 
and  await  me  in  my  study." 

The  boy  stood  as  if  crushed,  his  head  sunk 
upon  his  breast,  his  whole  frame  quivering 
under  the  load  of  shame  which  bore  him 
down  like  a  resistless  weight  Was  this  all 
that  his  word  was  worth  ?  The  blow  had 


102  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


fallen  suddenly  upon  him  ;  for  he  had  not, 
for  one  moment,  doubted  his  ability  to  clear 
himself  from  the  shameful  charge.  But  in 
an  instant  his  false  position  thrust  itself 
upon  him  in  its  clearest  light.  Every  thing 
was  against  him,  the  handwriting,  the  rough 
draft,  his  own  manner.  What  should  he  do  ? 
Did  every  one  doubt  him  ? 

He  glanced  hastily  around  to  see.  How 
coldly  and  suspiciously  all  his  old  friends  re- 
turned his  anxious  gaze!  Slowly  his  eye 
travelled  around  the  room,  meeting  no  friend- 
ly glance  anywhere,  until  it  reached  Ned 
Churchill's  face,  and  rested  there.  Ay,  rest- 
ed there  ;  for  it  was  met  by  a  smile  as  glad, 
as  trustful,  as  entirely  confiding,  as  ever  it 
had  met  before.  It  seemed  to  change  the 
whole  course  of  his  thoughts  and  feelings;  a 
new  resolution  seemed  to  inspire  him,  and 
straightening  himself  up,  he  turned  boldly 
toward  the  Doctor  once  more. 

"  I   requested   you   to    leave   the   room  at 


THE  PARODY.  103 


once,"  said  the  Doctor,  sternly.  "  Did  you  not 
hear  me  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,"  replied  Allan,  respectfully,  yet 
with  a  determination  which  quite  equalled 
the  master's  ;  "  but  I  must  be  heard.  You 
have  doubtless  the  power  to  expel  whom  you 
will  from  your  school  ;  but  have  you  the 
right  to  expel  me  unheard,  undefended,  upon 
mere  circumstantial  evidence  (which  I  must 
admit  is  strongly  against  me),  when  I  give 
you  my  word,  which  you  have  never  had 
reason  to  doubt,  that  I  am  guiltless  in  this 
thing?" 

"  If  you  can  clear  yourself,"  replied  the 
Doctor,  without  the  slightest  relenting  in  his 
tone,  "  no  one  will  be  more  ready  to  hear  you 
than  I  ;  but  it  will  be  a  strange  thing  if  you 
can  do  so,  after  acknowledging  this  paper  as 
your  own." 

"  1  spoke  of  that  paper  as  my  own,  totally 
mistaking  it,  sir.  I  had  not  seen  it,  but  sup- 
posed it  to  be  mine,  as  it  was  taken  from  a 


104  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


book  in  which  I  had  placed  some  manuscript. 
As  to  the  copy  of  the  Iliad,  and  the  papers 
which  it  contains,  I  have  not  seen  them,  either 
now  or  at  any  other  time.  I  had  heard  noth- 
ing of  the  plot,  either  of  its  conception  or  its 
execution,  until  now." 

"  How  do  you  account  for  this  then  ?  " 

Dr.  Drayton  handed  him  the  two  pencil 
drafts,  one  of  them  corrected,  revised,  and 
changed,  almost  line  by  line  ;  the  other  writ- 
ten out  more  clearly,  but  like  the  first,  dis- 
similar in  the  wording  in  some  respects  from 
that  taken  from  the  Professor's  door,  which 
had  evidently,  however,  been  copied  from  the 
clearer  draft.  Allan  studied  them  carefully. 
Like  the  first,  they  appeared  to  be  in  his 
own  handwriting.  He  could  not  compre- 
hend it. 

"I  cannot  account  for  it,  sir,"  he  answered, 
meeting  the  Doctor's  scrutinizing  gaze. 

"  You  own  that  it  is  written  exactly  in 
your  hand  ?  " 


THE  PARODY.  105 


"  No,  sir.  But  I  do  own  that  the  differences 
are  so  slight  that  not  one  person  in  five  hun- 
dred would  be  likely  to  detect  them." 

"  No  one  who  has  yet  seen  the  papers  has 
detected  them,"  said  the  Doctor,  pointedly. 
He  could  be  fearfully  caustic  when  he  chose. 
"  You  have  no  proof  of  innocence  to  offer  ?  " 

"  No,  sir,  none.  I  can  only  assert  and  re- 
assert my  complete  ignorance  of  the  whole 
affair." 

"  Then  I  must  request  you  to  consider  your 
relations  with  Drayton  Hall  discontinued  un- 
til such  time  as  you  can  refute  the  strong  evi- 
dence against  you.  You  will  do  well  to  re- 
tire to  my  study  at  once." 

Allan  felt  that  he  would  do  well  to  go  at 
once  ;  for  as  he  spoke  his  last  words,  he  had 
had  a  warning  that  if  he  intended  to  leave 
the  room  without  aid,  he  must  do  so  quickly. 
He  paused  for  one  moment  to  bow  coldly  to 
Dr.  Drayton,  and  again  to  the  masters  whom 
he  must  pass  in  leaving  the  room,  and  then 


106  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


moved  toward  the  door.  Reaching  it,  he 
turned  to  take  one  last  look  at  the  old  room 
which  he  should  never  enter  again,  and  then 
with  a  wistful  glance  at  Ned  he  went  out. 

But  in  that  momentary  look  which  Ned  had 
caught,  he  had  seen  something  that  made 
him  spring  up  suddenly,  to  the  astonishment 
of  all  around  him. 

"  The  young  gentlemen  will  please  to  keep 
their  seats,"  said  Dr.  Drayton,  sharply. 

"But  Allan  is  sick,"  said  Ned,  earnestly. 
"  Let  me  go  to  him,  please  ;  "  and  he  left  his 
desk,  forgetting  all  discipline  in  his  eagerness 
and  anxiety. 

"  Mr.  Churchill,  return  to  your  place,"  said 
the  Doctor,  authoritatively.  "  Mr.  Acton,  will 
you  see  if  Haywood  needs  attention  ?  It  did 
not  strike  me  that  he  looked  ill." 

Mr.  Acton  went  out  in  obedience  to  a  sign 
from  the  principal;  and  passing  through  the 
main  hall,  crossed  a  narrow  entry,  and  entered 
the  study,  or  "lecture-room,"  as  the  boys 


THE  PARODY.  107 


appropriately  termed  it.  But  Allan  was  not 
there.  Leaving  the  room  again,  he  noticed 
that  the  door  leading  to  a  small  piazza,  which 
ran  along  the  side  of  the  house,  was  open, 
and  looking  out  he  saw  him  leaning  against 
a  column  as  if  he  were  not  able  to  stand. 
Evidently  the  boy  had  heard  his  step  ;  for 
gathering  up  all  his  energy,  he  stood  erect, 
and  turned  his  colorless  face  toward  the 
teacher,  as  if  to  ask  why  he  had  intruded 
upon  him. 

"  Are  you  sick,  Hay  wood  ?  "  asked  Mr. 
Acton.  "  Shall  I  bring  any  thing  for  you  ?  " 

"  Nothing,  thank  you,"  replied  Allan,  coldly. 
"  I  need  nothing." 

"  You  are  looking  very  ill." 

The  words  were  kindly  spoken,  but  Allan 
made  no  answer. 

"  Will  you  come  into  the  study,  and  lie 
down  ?  " 

"  I  prefer  to  remain  here.     I  need  no  help." 

Mr.  Acton  moved  slowly  towards  the  door  ; 


108  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


but  before  he  had  actually  entered  the  house 
Allan's  better,  gentler  nature  triumphed. 

"  Forgive  my  rudeness,"  he  said,  laying  his 
hand  upon  Mr.  Acton's  arm.  "  I  know  you 
mean  kindly,  and  there  was  much  to  make 
you  doubt  me.  I  felt  as  if  I  were  choking, 
and  came  out  for  the  air.  I  will  stay  here 
until  the  Doctor  comes  ;  and  then  —  and  then 
—  I  will  go  home." 

His  desire  to  be  alone  was  so  manifest  that 
Mr.  Acton  left  him  ;  pausing  first  to  shake 
hands  with  him,  and  say,  "  I  do  most  earn- 
estly hope  that  you  may  be  able  to  prove 
your  innocence,  Haywood." 

"  Thank  you,"  he  said,  and  that  was  all. 


VI. 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION. 

HT^HERE  was  not  much  work  done  in 
school  that  day,  nor  when  studies 
were  over  did  there  seem  to  be  much  heart 
for  play.  The  boys  stood  about  the  roads 
and  lawn  in  groups,  discussing  the  exciting 
occurrences  of  the  morning,  all  expressing 
their  opinions  freely,  both  with  regard  to 
Allan  and  the  Doctor.  Allan's  manliness  and 
determination  had  won  universal  admiration, 
and  were  the  theme  of  much  praise;  while 
the  severity  of  Dr.  Drayton  was  commented 
upon  with  equal  freedom.  Some  thought  it 
perfectly  just:  others  thought  no  terms  too 
hard  for  its  condemnation ;  and  so  the  war 
of  words  ran  high  in  the  little  community. 


110  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  I  tell  you  what  it  is,  Will  Seaton,"  said 
Charlie  Grant,  one  of  Allan's  sturdiest  sup- 
porters, "  you'd  better  drop  your  rhymes  about 
'  soft  as  mush,'  and  '•  meek  as  Moses  '  now. 
There  isn't  a  boy  in  the  school  who  would 
have  faced  the  Doctor  as  old  Al  did  this 
morning.  He's  got  lots  of  pluck,  I  tell 
you.  You  couldn't  have  done  that  your- 
self." 

"  I'll  own  up  to  that,"  said  Will,  candidly. 
"I  wouldn't  wonder  if  I'd  have  walked  the 
first  time  the  Doc  ordered  me  out  of  the 
room  in  that  awful  voice  ;  and  I'm  very  sure 
I  couldn't  have  stood  the  second  dose.  Al 
don't  want  spirit,  after  all,  as  he  proved  this 
morning  before  that  row  came  on.  Do  you 
know,  Ned,"  he  asked,  turning  to  Churchill, 
who  stood  near,  leaning  against  a  tree,  and 
taking  little  part  in  the  conversation,  "  that 
he  caught  Bentley  up,  and  lifted  him  clean 
out  of  his  path  this  morning,  when  Arthur 
put  himself  in  his  way  ?  " 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  Ill 

*oC«3X*A>Q« 

"  No,"  said  Ned,  his  face  lighting  up 
eagerly.  «  Did  he  do  that  ?  " 

"  Ask  Bentley,"  laughed  Will.  «« It  was  a 
good  joke.  I  haven't  seen  a  better  in  a  long 
while.  Bentley  went  up  to  him  for  the  mere 
sake  of  chaffing  him  :  and  I  put  him  up  to  it, 
I'm  sorry  to  say.  He  began  with  his  impu- 
dence, of  which  Al  took  no  notice,  until  he 
fairly  stopped  him  in  the  road,  and  took  his 
Euripides  right  out  of  his  hand.  Al  just 
looked  at  him  as  cool  as  you  please.  Then 
he  caught  him  up  by  the  trousers,  and  turned 
him  out  of  the  road  as  if  he'd  been  a  snake. 
I  tell  you  I  was  mad  enough  at  myself  for  all 
I'd  said  and  done  this  morning." 

Ned  did  not  answer.  He  stood  glowering 
wrathfully  at  Bentley,  who  had  joined  another 
group  gathered  under  a  huge  oak-tree  near 
by.  The  conversation  turned  now  to  the 
case  of  the  parody,  and  the  evidence  for  and 
against  Allan.  Ned  did  not  listen  to  it  for 
long.  Turning  to  Laurence  Bronson,  who 


112  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


stood  near,  he  said,  "  Let's  go  up  to  the 
Crag,  Bronson  :  I'm  tired  of  all  this  talk." 

For  a  long  while  they  walked  on  in  silence, 
for  their  hearts  were  full.  Allan  was  a  great 
favorite  with  both,  as  indeed  he  was  with  the 
greater  part  of  the  school  ;  for  in  spite  of  the 
sobriquet  of  '  old  Al,'  which  his  steadiness 
and  sobriety  had  gained  for  him,  and  the  fun 
and  jokes  which  were  often  played  off  at  his 
expense,  there  was  scarcely  a  boy  in  the  Hall 
who  did  not  honor  him  for  his  adherence  to 
the  right,  and  love  him  for  his  unfailing  kind- 
ness and  helpfulness  to  all  who  were  in  need 
of  aid. 

They  passed  rapidly  over  the  distance 
which  lay  between  the  Hall  and  the  giant 
peak  to  which  they  had  set  out  ;  and,  climb- 
ing its  rough  side  by  a  narrow  and  precipi- 
tous path,  came  out  upon  a  ledge  of  rock 
overhanging  the  sea,  and  sat  down  there.  A 
huge  wall  of  rock  rising  behind  them  shut 
out  all  view  of  the  land,  and  before  them  lay 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  113 


a  great  waste  of  blue  water,  bounded  only  by 
the  far-off  horizon,  whose  waves  dashed  with 
a  roar  like  thunder  against  the  opposing 
crag. 

"  Laurence,"  said  Ned,  without  raising  his 
eyes  from  the  water  upon  which  they  had 
been  fixed  ever  since  he  had  taken  his  seat 
upon  the  ledge,  "  those  fellows  at  the  Hall 
are  the  shabbiest  set  of  scamps  I  ever  knew. 
There  aren't  half  a  dozen  boys  there  who 
believe  in  Allan.  Half  a  dozen?  I  don't 
believe  there's  one,  besides  yourself  and  me, 
unless  it's  little  Charlie.  You  don't  mean  to 
say,"  he  added,  turning  fiercely  on  Laurence, 
who  had  not  answered,  "  that  you  don't  trust 
him?" 

"  No  :  I  don't  mean  to  say  any  thing  of  the 
kind,"  said  Bronson,  quietly  ;  "  but  I  must 
confess  myself  perfectly  bewildered.  Such  a 
strange  thing  happened  this  morning,  Ned. 
You  remember  Seaton's  telling  you  about 
Bentley's  snatching  Allan's  book  from  him  ?  " 
8 


114  ALLAN  HATWOOD. 


«  Yes." 

"  Bentley  dropped  the  book  when  Al  seized 
him,  and  it  fell  in  the  road.  There  were  a 
lot  of  papers  in  it,  and  I  gathered  them  all  up. 
As  I  handed  them  to  Al,  I  said  some  trifling 
thing  about  them;  and  you  never  saw  a 
fellow  look  so  startled.  He  caught  them 
away  from  me  as  quick  as  a  flash,  and  hid 
them  away  in  the  book  in  no  time,  looking 
all  round  to  make  sure  that  none  had  been 
left  behind.  And,  Ned,  I'm  almost  certain 
that  paper  was  among  them.  In  fact,  I  am 
sure  ;  for  I  saw  '  Parody  '  written  on  the  out- 
side of  it." 

Ned  sat  thinking.  He,  too,  remembered 
just  such  an  occurrence,  and  Allan's  evident 
anxiety  lest  he  should  see  the  papers  which 
he  had  placed  in  the  book.  Indeed,  Allan's 
confusion  when  Mr.  Acton  opened  the  Eurip- 
ides had  brought  it  to  his  mind  before,  but  his 
friend's  manner  had  so  convinced  him  of  his 
innocence,  that  he  had  put  the  recollection 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  115 


from  him,  feeling  certain  that  he  would  ex- 
plain it  all  in  time. 

"  I  don't  know  what  it  means,"  he  said  at 
last,  slowly  and  thoughtfully  ;  "  but  I  do 
know  that  no  boy  could  possibly  have  borne 
himself  as  Allan  did  to-day  unless  he  were 
perfectly  innocent.  '  Meek'  those  fellows  call 
him  !  It  would  be  a  glorious  thing  for  them 
all  if  they  could  get  hold  of  a  little  of  his  style 
of.rneekness.  What  are  we  to  do  for  him?" 

Poor  Ned  !  if  he  had  been  a  girl  he  would 
have  laid  his  head  down  upon  Laurence's 
shoulder  and  cried  the  tumult  of  his  grief  and 
indignation  into  something  like  calmness. 
But  being  a  tall  boy,  fifteen  years  old,  he 
would  not,  perhaps  could  not,  give  himself 
that  blessed  relief;  so  he  sprang  to  his  feet, 
and  began  to  pace  up  and  down  the  narrow 
ledge  with  swift,  rapid  strides. 

"  Laurence,"  he  said,  stopping  suddenly  in 
his  walk,  "  did  you  say  that  Bentley  actually 
had  that  book  in  his  hand  ?  " 


116  ALLAN  II  AY  WOOD. 


"  Yes,  I  said  so.  He  held  it  for  a  full 
minute  I  should  think." 

"  And  it  was  the  same  book  from  which 
the  parody  was  taken  ?  " 

"  Yes.  But  —  Ned  —  Ned  —  you  surely 
don't  suspect  Bentley  of  such  a  deed  as  that  ?  " 
said  Laurence,  in  a  shocked  voice,  as  his 
companion's  meaning  flashed  on  him. 

"  I  did  not  say  so,"  replied  Ned. 

"  And  then  the  handwriting,"  suggested 
Laurence  ;  "  how  can  we  account  for  that?  " 

"  I  don't  pretend  to  account  for  it,"  was 
the  second  unsatisfactory  answer. 

Two  or  three  more  of  those  rapid  turns  up 
and  down  the  rock  were  taken,  and  then  Ned 
said,  "  Laurence,  I  want  to  go  back.  Are 
you  ready  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  and  we  need  to  go  at  once.  We 
will  not  have  more  than  time  to  reach  the 
Hall  before  study-hour.  It  is  past  tea-time 
now." 

"  Churchill,"  said    Charlie   Grant,  running 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION. 


up  to  meet  them  as  they  entered  the  gates, 
"  here  is  a  note  which  a  man  gave  me  for 
you  just  now.  I  think  it  was  Mr.  Leonard's 
man.  Is  it  from  dear  old  Al  ?  "  asked  the 
child,  lingering  at  Ned's  side  as  he  tore  open 
the  envelope. 

"  Yes,"  said  Ned,  slowly,  as  his  eye  ran 
over  the  few  hastily  written  words. 

"  Does  he  say  Mr.  Leonard  believes  him  ?  " 
persisted  Charlie. 

"  Of  course  he  does,"  replied  Ned,  sharply, 
but  without  looking  up  from  the  note. 

"  And  so  do  I,  with  my  whole  heart,"  said 
the  child,  earnestly. 

"  You  grand  little  fellow!"  exclaimed  Ned, 
his  face  breaking  into  the  first  smile  it  had 
worn  that  day.  "  Stick  to  him,  Charlie  boy. 
We'll  clear  him  yet,  —  you  and  I  ;  "  and,  snatch- 
ing him  up  in  his  arms,  he  kissed  him  twice. 

Charlie  stood  looking  after  him  in  perfect 
amazement  ;  as,  having  placed  him  on  his 
feet  again,  Ned  turned  away,  and  walked 


118  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


rapidly  up  the  road  toward  the  Hall,  without 
even  waiting  for  Laurence. 

Passing  in  through  the  main  entrance,  he 
crossed  over  to  the  long  school-room,  and 
walked  straight  to  Allan  Hay  wood's  desk. 
The  Euripides  he  had  placed  within  it  before 
leaving  the  room  that  afternoon  ;  and  now 
taking  it  out,  he  opened  it,  and  took  from  it 
Allan's  translation.  That  did  not  seem  to 
content  him,  for  he  looked  the  book  over 
carefully  again  and  again.  Then  he  ex- 
amined the  desk,  but  apparently  with  the 
same  unsatisfactory  result;  for  he  was  rising 
from  it  with  a  very  disturbed  expression  of 
face,  when  something  lying  on  the  floor  at 
his  feet  caught  his  eye.  He  stooped  and 
picked  it  up.  It  was  a  sheet  of  foolscap 
paper,  folded  to  about  the  size  of  that  on 
which  the  parody  was  written.  Simply 
glancing  at  it,  he  placed  it  in  his  pocket  ;  then 
he  smoothed  out  the  crumpled  note  which  he 
still  held  in  his  hand,  and  re-read  it. 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  110 


"  DEAR  NED,  —  I  have  only  time  to  write  a 
word  or  two  ;  but  if  you  can  get  hold  of  my 
Euripides,  will  you  take  from  it  some  papers 
which  are  there  ?  I  am  afraid  that  you  will 
laugh  over  them  as  sentimental  scribbling, 
but  I  must  run  the  risk.  Don't  let  any  one 
else  see  them. 

"  The  thought  of  your  dear,  faithful  face, 
so  full  of  trust  when  every  other  was  dark 
with  doubt,  kept  me  up  until  I  reached  the 
Parsonage,  where  I  am  trusted  as  you  trust 
me  ;  and  I  want  no  more. 

"  Your  ever  grateful  friend, 

"  ALLAN  HAYWOOD.'' 

"Oh,  Al!  Al!  and  only  this  morning  I 
called  you  *  coward  '  !  What  a  miserable  fool 
I  was  not  to  know  your  brave  heart  better 
than  that!" 

He  laid  his  head  down  upon  the  book,  and 
a  great,  heavy  sob  broke  from  him  ;  but  no 
tears  came  to  soften  the  bitter,  self-reproach- 
ful sorrow  which  oppressed  his  heart.  By 


120  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


and  by  he  heard  the  voices  of  the  boys  as 
they  went  by  the  windows.  It  was  study- 
hour,  and  in  another  moment  they  would  be 
in  the  room.  Hastily  placing  the  Euripides 
in  his  own  desk,  he  took  out  some  of  his 
books  ;  and,  by  the  time  that  the  door  was 
thrown  noisily  open,  was  apparently  en- 
grossed in  his  studies. 

Meantime,  Allan,  having  been  closeted  for 
an  hour  with  Dr.  Brayton,  had  set  out  for 
the  Parsonage,  bearing  with  him  a  letter 
which,  the  Doctor  said,  would  be  followed 
that  evening  by  a  visit  from  himself  to  his 
guardian. 

A  walk  of  five  long  miles  lay  before  Allan, 
a  task  for  which  he  felt  scarcely  equal  ;  but 
nothing  would  have  tempted  him  to  breathe 
the  truth  to  the  Doctor.  And  when  once  he 
had  started,  the  fresh,  bright  air  seemed  to 
invigorate  him,  and  he  arrived  at  his  journey's 
end  without  a  recurrence  of  the  strange  pain 
which  had  come  upon  him  so  often  within 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  121 


the  last  day  or  two.  But  he  was  very  tired, 
—  so  tired  that  he  felt  he  must  look  white 
and  jaded  ;  and  he  paused  at  a  few  rods  from 
the  Parsonage  gate  to  rest  awhile,  for  he  did 
not  want  to  startle  them  with  his  pallid  face. 

It  was  a  pleasant  picture  that  met  his  eye 
as  he  stood  there  leaning  against  a  fence  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  road.  The  little 
brown  Parsonage  embowered  in  the  horse- 
chestnut  trees,  with  the  sunlight  flashing  on 
all  its  window-panes,  looked  like  a  gold-stone 
set  in  green  and  white  mosaic  ;  while  the 
clear  sky,  overarching  all,  formed  a  second 
setting  of  blue  enamel.  And  the  prettiest 
bit  of  coloring  in  all  the  sweet  picture  was 
the  gentle-looking  woman  sitting  in  that 
window,  with  the  lace  curtain  falling  around 
her  like  a  veil,  her  head  bent  over  her  sewing, 
and  the  soft  ripple  of  her  voice,  as  she  war- 
bled out  the  music  of  an  old  hymn,  coming 
to  him  as  he  watched  her. 

"  Dear  Aunt  Carrie  !  " 


122  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


There  was  no  tie  of  relationship  between 
them  save  that  which  makes  some  women 
kin  to  all  on  whom  their  sweet  influence 
falls  ;  but  he  had  always  called  her  by  the 
name  since  that  first  night  on  which  he  had 
come,  a  perfect  stranger,  to  her  home  ;  brought 
by  her  husband  to  whose  care  he  had  been  left 
by  his  dying  father,  an  old  friend  of  Mr 
Leonard's. 

She  had  been  a  beauty  once,  report  said; 
and  certainly,  with  those  silvery  bands  of 
hair  laid  back  from  the  smooth,  fair  brow, 
with  those  bright,  dark  eyes  which  seemed 
always  looking  yearningly  out  to  see  what 
sunlight  they  could  shed  on  a  world  full  of 
shadows,  and  those  full  red  lips  which  were 
ever  breaking  into  happy  song,  the  mistress 
of  Graydon  Parsonage  was  something  more 
than  a  beauty  now. 

The  very  room  in  which  she  sat  was  full 
of  sweet  memories  to  him.  As  he  stood 
waiting  there,  he  recalled  it  as  he  had  seen 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  123 


it  on  the  night  of  his  arrival  ;  the  bright  wood 
fire  blazing  on  the  hearth,  throwing  a  ruddy 
glow  over  the  pictures  on  the  walls,  and 
flinging  fantastic  shadows  on  the  dark  wains- 
coting; the  neat,  orderly  room  where  every 
thing  looked  easy  and  cosily  comfortable,  yet 
where  every  thing  was  in  its  proper  place,  for 
there  were  no  darling,  disarranging  little 
hands  in  the  old  Parsonage.  Nearly  thirty 
years  ago,  a  sunny  little  head  had  been  laid 
to  rest  in  Graydon  churchyard  ;  yet  the 
mother  talked  of  her  "  baby  "  still.  What  if 
the  violets  had  blossomed  over  the  tiny  grave 
for  nearly  thirty  spring-times  ;  what  if  it  were 
so  many  long,  long  years  since  she  folded 
the  little  snowy  dresses,  and  laid  away  the 
small  socks  which  should  never  cover  dancing 
feet  again;  was  he  not  her  "baby"  still? 
There  had  been  no  sorrow  nor  pain  for  him 
in  all  those  long  years  ;  the  smooth  fair  brow 
had  not  been  wrinkled  with  the  cares  of  man- 
hood; the  soft,  clear  eyes  had  not  grown 


124  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


serious  and  grave  with  thought  and  anxiety  : 
she  had  laid  him  in  the  Master's  tender  arms, 
"  a  little  child,"  when  He  had  called  him, 
and 

"  They  measure  not  by  months  and  years, 
Where  he  had  gone  to  dwell." 

And  then  the  boy  thought  of  the  greeting 
he  had  received.  How  the  dimly-seen  figure 
sitting  in  the  window,  with  her  work-table 
beside  her,  but  with  her  hands  folded  idly  in 
her  lap,  singing  softly  in  the  gloaming,  had 
come  quickly  forward  to  meet  him.  How 
she  had  taken  his  face  between  her  hands  and 
kissed  his  forehead  ;  and  then  had  drawn  him 
to  the  fire,  and  held  his  cold  fingers  in  her 
own  warm  grasp,  and  talked  gently  of  his 
journey  and  other  trivial  matters,  until  he 
went  up  to  his  room  ;  and  then  how  she  had 
come  to  him  when  he  had  laid  his  tired, 
aching  head  upon  the  pillow,  and,  kneeling 
beside  his  bed,  had  laid  her  hand  tenderly  on 
his  forehead,  as  she  said,  "  So  you  have 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  125 


come  to  Graydon  to  be  my  boy,  Allan. 
Many,  many  years  ago,  my  only  little  one 
went  up  to  the  far-off  land  to  which  your 
dear  father  and  mother  have  just  gone.  They 
have  gone  to  my  child,  and  their  child  has 
come  to  me.  I  will  love  him  very  dearly  for 
my  baby's  sake  ;  and  he  will  love  me  for  his 
mother's  sake."  He  had  laid  his  head  upon 
her  breast  without  a  word  ;  but  from  that 
night  s\\e  had  stood  next  to  his  mother  in  his 
heart's  love. 

For  full  fifteen  minutes,  he  had  been  lean- 
ing against  the  fence,  thinking  over  all  this, 
when  suddenly  she  turned  her  head,  and  saw 
him.  In  an  instant,  her  work  was  thrown 
aside,  and  although  he  went  quickly  to  meet 
her,  she  ran  so  swiftly  that  she  reached  the 
gate  before  him. 

"  Allan,  my  dear  boy,  what  is  it?  Have 
you  been  sent  home  sick?  "  and  taking  both 
his  hands  in  hers,  she  looked  anxiously  in  his 
face. 


126  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  I  have  been  sent  home,  Aunt  Carrie,  but 
not  sick,"  he  said  with  an  effort  to  speak 
cheerily. 

"  But  you  are  sick.  I  see  it  in  your  face, 
child.  And  sent  home,  you  say.  What  do 
you  mean  ?  " 

"  I  have  been  sent  home  in  disgrace  ;  but 
I  declare  to  you,  Auntie,  it  is  on  a  false 
charge.  You  must  trust  me,  whoever  else 
doubts  me.  You  will  believe  what  I  say, 
Aunt  Carrie  ;  no  matter  how  much  circum- 
stances tell  against  me,  won't  you?  " 

"  Certainly  I  will,  my  boy,"  she  said,  bend- 
ing to  kiss  the  earnest  face.  "  But  corne  in, 
and  tell  me  all  about  it.  How  came  '  old 
Al,'  "  and  she  smiled  as  she  quoted  his  school- 
name,  -  —  "  how  carne  '  old  Al,'  such  a  steady 
old  man  as  he,  to  have  any  serious  charge 
laid  at  his  door?" 

"  Come  in,  and  I  will  tell  you  all  I  know," 
he  said,  "but  that  is  very  little.  There  is 
Mr.  Leonard  at  the  window." 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  127 


"  Why,  Allan  Hayvvood,  what  brings  you 
home  at  this  time  ?  "  said  the  minister,  hurry- 
ing down  the  walk  to  meet  them. 

"  This  will  tell  you  more  than  I  can,"  said 
Allan,  handing  to  him  Dr.  Drayton's  letter. 
"  But,  Mr.  Leonard,"  and  he  grasped  his  hand 
almost  painfully,  "don't  condemn  me  un- 
heard as  he  has  done." 

"Don't  fear,  my  boy,"  he  answered  kindly; 
and  sitting  down  upon  the  step  of  the  piazza, 
he  opened  the  Doctor's  note,  while  Allan  and 
Mrs.  Leonard  passed  on  into  the  house. 

Allan  was  not  long  in  telling  his  story, 
and  he  was  just  drawing  to  its  close  when 
Mr.  Leonard  came  in  with  the  open  letter  in 
his  hand. 

"  This  is  a  strange  thing,  Allan,"  he  said  ; 
"  some  one  has  been  using  you  most  shame- 
fully." 

"  He  has  been  telling  me  the  story,"  said 
Mrs.  Leonard.  "  And  it  seems  to  me,  Horace, 
that  Dr.  Drayton  might  have  seen  very  easily 


128  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


that  the  plot  has  been  rather  against  Allan 
than  against  Professor  Bentley." 

"  So  it  strikes  me,"  said  her  husband. 
"  But  read  that  letter,  Allan,  and  see  how 
well  the  Doctor's  version  agrees  with 
yours." 

The  boy  took  the  letter,  and  read  it.  It 
gave  a  perfectly  correct  statement  of  all  the 
facts  as  they  had  occurred,  although,  of  course, 
Dr.  Drayton's  firm  conviction  that  he  was  the 
guilty  party  threw  its  coloring  over  the  whole 
recital. 

"  I  can  find  no  fault  with  that,  sir,"  he 
said,  handing  it  to  Mrs.  Leonard.  "  Any  one 
can  see  from  it  that  he  considers  me  guilty  ; 
but  as  facts  seem  to  prove  that,  I  cannot 
blame  him.  I  think  his  injustice  lies  in  ex- 
pelling me  from  the  school  until  such  time  as 
I  can  prove  my  innocence,  when  its  proofs 
must,  of  course,  be  obtained  in  the  school. 
He  is  very  much  attached  to  Professor  Ben- 
tley ;  and  I  suppose  that  his  indignation  has 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  129 


led  him  to  this  hasty  course,  for  it  is  very  un- 
like him." 

"  Do  you  suspect  any  one,  Allan  ?  " 

"  Not  fairly,  Mr.  Leonard.  I  have  a  sus- 
picion in  my  own  mind,  but  it  is  too  en- 
tirely without  foundation  for  me  to  speak  of 
it" 

"  Even  to  us  ?  "  said  Mrs.  Leonard. 

"  Yes,  Aunt  Carrie,  even  to  you  ;  for  if  I 
am  not  right,  I  should  be  doing  some  one  a 
terrible  wrong  in  breathing  a  suspicion  of  his 
having  done  such  a  miserably  wicked  deed." 

No  answer  was  made  to  this,  and  after  a 
moment's  silence,  Allan  said,  — 

"  I  want  to  send  a  note  to  Ned  Churchill. 
Is  Martin  going  up  to  the  village  ?  " 

"  Yes  :  there  he  comes  now  with  the  wag- 
on. I  will  call  to  him  to  wait  ;  "  and  Mr. 
Leonard  went  out  to  stop  the  man,  while 
Allan  wrote  his  few  hurried  lines. 

"  Why  don't  you  lie  down  there  for  a  little 
while  ?  "  said  Mrs.  Leonard,  as  he  leaned 


130  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


wearily  back  upon  the  sofa  after  giving  his 
note  to  Martin.  "  You  look  completely  tired 
out." 

"  I  felt  so  before  I  saw  you,"  said  Allan  ; 
"  but  I  am  nearly  rested  now.  I  wish  I  could 
tell  you,  Aunt  Carrie,  how  much  good  you 
and  Mr.  Leonard  have  done  me.  I  was  sure 
that  I  could  convince  you  that  it  was  all 
false  ;  but  I  did  not  expect  such  perfectly  un- 
questioning confidence." 

"  You  might  have  expected  it,  my  boy," 
she  said  as  she  arranged  the  sofa  pillows 
more  easily  for  him;  "for  you  know  that  we 
never  have  had  cause  to  doubt  your  word." 

And  as  she  sat  beside  him  after  he  had 
fallen  into  a  heavy  sleep,  she  wondered  how 
any  one  could  doubt  that  honest,  open  face, 
which  even  in  his  sleep  seemed  to  give  the 
lie  to  the  unworthy  accusation. 

The  evening  brought  Dr.  Drayton  as  he 
had  promised.  He  had  a  long  talk  with 
Mr.  Leonard,  in  which  the  latter  did  his 


TRUST  AND  SUSPICION.  131 


best  to  convince  him  of  Allan's  innocence; 
but  the  Doctor  was  not  to  be  persuaded  by 
any  thing  short  of  absolute  proof,  and  as  that 
was  not  in  Mr.  Leonard's  possession,  he 
made  but  little  impression  upon  him.  He 
listened  respectfully  to  all  that  the  minister 
had  to  say  ;  but  when  all  was  said  and  done, 
his  opinion  was  evidently  unaltered.  Of  one 
point,  however,  Mr.  Leonard  did  succeed  in 
convincing  him  ;  and  that  was,  if  Allan  were 
not  in  fault,  the  guilty  person  had  done  even 
worse  than  he  was  accused  of  doing;  and 
that,  in  his  absence  from  school,  the  boy 
could  not  have  the  faintest  hope  of  discover- 
ing his  enemy. 

"  That  is  so,"  said  the  Doctor,  in  his  grave, 
passionless  manner,  when  Mr.  Leonard  had 
at  last  forced  him  to  allow  that  he  had  been 
too  hasty  in  his  punishment  of  the  suspected 
boy.  "  What  should  you  advise  to  be  done 
in  the  case,  Mr.  Leonard  ?  You  would  not 
counsel  his  readmission  into  the  school  ?  " 


132  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  I  should  most  certainly  advise  it,  if  I 
thought  he  would  return,"  said  Mr.  Leonard, 
warmly.  "  If  we  have  been  over-hasty  in  our 
condemnation,  we  ought  not  to  be  over-slow 
to  acknowledge  it.  But  it  would  be  a  very 
trying  thing  for  Allan  to  go  back  now.  His 
position  would  be  a  terrible  one  for  such  a 
sensitive  boy  as  he.  Nevertheless,  if  you  will 
consent,  I  shall  do  all  I  can  to  influence  him 
to  return  to  the  Hall,  for  I  consider  that  his 
only  chance  of  righting  himself.  Have  I 
your  permission  to  propose  it  ?  " 

"  I  must  ask  for  a  little  time  for  reflection," 
said  the  Doctor.  "  I  wish  to  be  just;  but  I 
cannot,  as  yet,  see  the  slightest  reason  to 
alter  my  judgment.  You  shall  hear  from  me 
to-morrow  evening;"  and,  with  a  very  stiff 
bow,  the  Doctor  left  the  house,  feeling  more 
uncomfortable  than  he  would  have  cared  to 
confess  ;  for,  cold  and  stern  as  he  was,  he 
was  most  sincere  in  his  desire  to  deal  fairly 
and  justly  by  his  scholars. 


VII 

PATIENT  WAITING. 

r  I  ""HE  question  of  Allan's  return  to  school 
was  not  left  either  to  his  own  decision  or 
to  that  of  Dr.  Drayton.  He  had  quitted  the 
library  quite  early  that  evening,  saying  that 
he  was  very  tired,  and  had  been  but  a  few 
moments  gone,  when  a  sharp  cry  startled  both 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leonard,  and  made  them  run 
quickly  into  the  hall.  Allan  was  sitting  on 
the  stairs  with  his  handkerchief  held  to  his 
mouth,  bending  over  as  if  cramped  with  pain. 
It  needed  but  one  glance  to  tell  them  what 
had  caused  the  cry  which  had  brought  them 
to  him ;  for  a  dark,  crimson  stream  was 
staining  the  white  handkerchief,  and  as  they 
reached  him  the  boy  sank  back  fainting  on 
the  stairs. 


134  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  I  knew  how  it  must  end,"  said  the 
Doctor,  as  an  hour  later  he  stood  beside  the 
bed  to  which  Allan  had  been  carried  ;  "  but  I 
did  not  think  things  had  come  to  such  a 
serious  pass  as  this.  Has  he  been  exerting 
himself  beyond  his  strength,  or  been  under 
violent  excitement  ?  " 

"  He  has  been  much  excited  all  day,"  said 
Mr.  Leonard,  "  owing  to  a  difficulty  with  Dr. 
Drayton  in  school  ;  but  I  don't  know  that  he 
has  made  any  undue  exertion,  except  that  he 
walked  over  from  the  Hall  this  afternoon; 
and  he  has  often  done  that." 

Allan  had  been  forbidden  to  speak,  but  the 
Doctor  saw  something  in  his  face  which  made 
him  say,  "  If  you  have  suffered  any  heavy 
strain,  lift  your  hand." 

The  hand  was  lifted,  and  then  fell  slowly 
back  upon  the  bed. 

"  I  thought  as  much,"  said  Dr.  Buford  : 
"  but  we  will  have  him  all  right  again  soon. 
This  is  a  mere  temporary  affair,  and  with  such 


PATIENT   WAITING.  135 


care  as  Mrs.  Leonard  will  give  him,  he  will 
be  out  again  in  a  day  or  two.  But  I  would 
give  up  school  for  the  summer,  my  boy. 
That  comes  hard,  does  it?"  he  went  on, 
noticing  the  pained,  distressed  look  which 
came  upon  Allan's  face.  "  Well,  we  will  see. 
If  you  make  haste  to  grow  strong,  I  will  let 
you  go  to  work  again." 

"  Is  he  fond  of  study  ?  "  asked  the  physician 
as  he  followed  Mr.  Leonard  into  the  library 
when  he  had  left  Allan.  "  He  looked  so  very 
unhappy  when  I  spoke  of  his  leaving  school 
that  I  was  sorry  I  had  made  the  suggestion." 

"  No  :  he  is  not  remarkably  studious  ;  but 
he  'has  had  a  somewhat  rough  experience 
there,  poor  fellow!  "  And  the  minister  went 
on  to  give  the  story  of  the  morning. 

"  But  how  came  he  to  be  so  unwilling  to  let 
them  handle  the  book  containing  the  paper?" 
asked  the  doctor,  on  whose  impartial  mind 
the  suspicious  circumstances  of  the  occurrence 
had  their  effect. 


136  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  Because  it  contained  some  lines  written 
by  himself.  What  they  were,  I  do  not  know  ; 
but  he  has  quite  a  talent  for  poetry,  of  which 
he  is  exceedingly  ashamed.  Even  I  have 
seen  only  one  or  two  of  his  pieces,  and  those 
under  protest.  It  seems  that  on  Saturday, 
something  had  occurred  which  suggested  these 
lines,  and  he  wrote  them  off,  and  laid  them 
in  an  Euripides  which  he  was  using  at  the 
time  in  preparing  his  lessons  for  Monday. 
The  extra  task  which  Dr.  Drayton  imposed 
upon  him  hurried  him  very  much  ;  and  in 
that  way,  I  suppose,  he  forgot  to  put  his  own 
composition  in  some  more  private  place. 
At  any  rate,  it  was  still  lying  in  the  book 
when  Mr.  Acton  examined  it  ;  and  Allan 
supposed  that  it  was  this  paper  which  Dr. 
Drayton  requested  him  to  read  to  the  school. 
If  you  had  any  idea  of  the  boy's  exceeding 
reticence  and  shyness  with  regard  to  his 
poetic  effusions,  you  would  not  wonder  at 
his  being  completely  overcome  with  embar- 


PATIENT   WAITING.  137 


rassment  and  annoyance  at  the  idea  of  a 
private  paper  being  subjected  to  the  criticism 
of  such  good-hearted  but  somewhat  unmerci- 
ful judges  as  any  body  of  school-boys  would 
prove.  No,  no  :  our  boy  is  innocent  in 
this  affair  ;  and  if  you  could  hear  him  tell  his 
story,  you  would  be  as  sure  of  it  as  we  are." 

"  I  dare  say,"  said  Dr.  Buford.  "  It  seems 
strange  indeed  to  think  of  Allan  as  guilty  of 
such  an  outrageous  trick." 

"  But  as  to  the  boy  himself,  doctor  ?  Is  this 
hemorrhage  from  his  lungs  ?  " 

"  I  fear  it  is,  Mr.  Leonard.  I  must  let  you 
into  his  secret,  now  that  it  is  of  no  use  to 
keep  it.  He  came  to  me  on  Saturday,  and 
asked  me  to  examine  his  chest,  saying  that 
he  was  quite  sure  his  respiration  was  seriously 
impeded  from  some  cause.  I  did  so,  and 
found  reason  to  fear  that  his  lungs  were  in  a 
very  bad  state  ;  but  as  I  had  lent  my  stetho- 
scope to  a  neighboring  physician,  I  was  un- 
able to  make  a  thorough  examination;  and 


138  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


he  engaged  to  come  to  me  next  Saturday  for 
a  more  intelligent  verdict  as  to  his  condition. 
He  bound  me  by  a  promise  not  to  speak  of 
his  visit,  which  I  gave  on  condition  of  his 
giving  a  counterpromise  that  he  would  him- 
self tell  you  what  I  had  to  say  after  next 
Saturday's  examination  by  the  stethoscope. 
He  did  not  want  to  worry  you,  he  said,  with 
any  useless  fears.  But  for  himself,  he  pinned 
me  down  closely  to  an  answer,  and  I  was 
forced  to  confess  that  his  chance  for  a  long 
life  was  very  small.  With  good  care,  how- 
ever, he  will  rally  from  this  attack.  You 
must  keep  him  cheerful,  and  try  to  banish 
this  unhappy  affair  from  his  mind  as  much  as 
possible." 

"  That  will  be  a  very  difficult  matter,  doc- 
tor; for  it  has  wounded  him  most  deeply," 
said  Mr.  Leonard,  sadly.  "  But  we  will  do 
all  we  can.  We  have  always  been  very 
anxious  lest  he  should  have  inherited  this 
from  his  father  ;  but  he  never  even  whispered 


PATIENT   WAITING.  139 


a  suspicion  of  his  failing  health  or  strength, 
and,  although  he  has  always  been  a  delicate- 
looking  boy,  he  seemed  as  well  as  usual." 

"  I  know  it.  I  was  greatly  surprised  when 
he  confided  to  me  how  far  the  trouble  had 
progressed,  but  even  then  I  did  not  anticipate 
such  a  sudden  change  as  this.  He  has  prob- 
ably had  some  strain,  perhaps  a  fall,  or  some- 
thing of  the  kind  ;  and  that,  added  to  the  ex- 
citement of  this  accusation,  has  prostrated 
him.  I  will  call  early  in  the  morning;"  and 
the  doctor  took  his  leave. 

To  Ned  Churchill,  that  week  of  anxiety 
passed  on  slowly  enough.  The  rules  of  the 
Hall,  with  regard  to  leaving  the  institution 
on  any  day  but  Saturday,  were  most  strin- 
gent; and  though  Mary  kept  him  constantly 
informed  of  Allan's  returning  strength,  he 
longed  so  much  to  sec  him,  and  assure  him, 
with  his  own  lips,  of  his  unshaken  faith 
and  trust,  that  it  seemed  as  if  he  could  not 
wait  for  that  far-off  Saturday.  But  at  last  it 


140  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


dawned  ;  and  as  soon  as  breakfast  was  over 
he  mounted  his  horse,  which  Thomas  had 
brought  over  for  him,  and  rode  away  to  the 
Parsonage  before  going  home. 

A  low  whistle  greeted  him,  as  he  threw 
himself  from  his  horse  at  the  gate.  Looking 
up,  he  saw  Allan  at  the  window,  and  in 
another  minute  he  was  in  his  room.  "  I 
knew  you  would  come  to-day,"  Allan  said; 
"but  I  did  not  hope  it  would  be  so  early. 
What  will  Mary  say?  " 

"  Oh  !  I  have  seen  Mary  every  day  this 
week.  But  how  are  you,  old  fellow  ?  " 
Pretty  jolly  ?  " 

"  Very  jolly  since  I  have  seen  you,"  said 
Allan,  smiling,  holding  both  Ned's  hands 
tightly  in  his  as  if  he  were  afraid  he  would 
escape  him.  "  But  sit  right  down  here  and 
tell  me  all  about  things  at  the  Hall.  Are 
they  any  better?  What  do  the  boys  think 
now?" 

"  They   are    all    delighted    that    you   put 


PATIENT  WAITING.  141 


Bentley  down  at  last,"  said  Ned,  purposely 
misunderstanding  him;  for  Mrs.  Leonard 
had  stopped  him,  as  he  sprang  up  the  stairs, 
to  warn  him  not  to  talk  of  the  parody  affair 
any  more  than  he  could  help. 

"  That  is  not  what  I  mean,"  said  Allan, 
quietly.  "  I  am  very  sorry  that  I  had  to  do 
it  ;  but  when  Bentley  went  so  far,  I  had  to 
put  him  out  of  my  path  in  some  way.  But 
as  to  the  other  thing,  —  what  do  the  boys 
say?" 

It  was  a  hard  question  to  answer,  with 
those  anxious  eyes  watching  him  so  intently. 

"  Oh,  some  of  the  stupids  think  it  was  your 
doing,"  he  said,  as  carelessly  as  he  could; 
"  but  you  needn't  care  for  what  they  think. 
Little  Charlie  is  strong  on  your  side.  He 
fights  for  you  like  a  Trojan." 

"  Bentley,  of  course,  is  against  me,  —  what, 
not  Bentley  !  "  he  asked,  catching  a  curious 
expression  on  Ned's  face.  "  Does  he  think  I 
am  innocent  ?  " 


142  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  I  have  not  heard  him  say,"  replied  Chur- 
chill, evasively.  "  But  he  has  some  sense,  if  he 
is  a  crabbed  old  stick  ;  so  he  must  believe  you." 

"  And  Bronson,  Austin,  and  the  rest  of  our 
set?" 

Against  him,  every  one  of  them.  What 
could  the  boy  say  ?  He  did  not  need  to  say 
any  thing,  for  Allan  saw  his  answer  in  his 
face. 

"  All  doubtful,  at  least,"  he  said,  with  a 
little  tremor  in  his  voice.  "  Don't  think  me 
a  fool,  Ned.  I  wouldn't  mind  so  much  if  it 
were  only  the  dons  who  mistrusted  me  ;  but 
I  can't  bear  to  have  the  fellows  think  me 
guilty.  It  would  be  bad  enough  to  have 
them  suspect  me  of  such  a  mean  trick  as  that 
was  ;  but  to  have  them  think  me  such  a  liar  ! 
Oh  !  why  can  I  not  go  back  and  search  the 
thing  out?" 

"Don't,  Al!  don't!"  said  Ned,  pleadingly, 
as  Hay  wood  started  up  from  his  chair.  "  Sit 
down,  old  boy.  The  thing  shall  be  searched 


PATIENT    WAITING.  143 


out,  I  promise  you.     We'll  be  all  right  yet, 
Al.     Only  wait  awhile." 

"  'They  that  wait  upon  the  Lord  shall  re- 
new their  strength,'  "  said  a  soft  voice  just 
behind  them;  and  Mrs.  Leonard,  who  had 
entered  the  room,  came  forward  and  laid  her 
hand  upon  Allan's  shoulder.  "  I  have  heard 
only  Ned's  last  words,"  she  said  ;  "  but  I 
know  what  you  must  have  been  talking  of. 
This  will  not  do  for  you,  dear  boy.  I  thought 
that  you  had  resolved  to  '  commit  your  way 
unto  the  Lord,  trusting  to  Him  to  bring  it  to 


"  I  had  made  up  my  mind  to  that,"  he 
answered,  more  gently.  "  But  sometimes  it 
almost  seems  as  if  I  could  not  stand  it.  But 
I  will  try,  Aunt  Carrie.  We  won't  talk  of 
the  doubters  any  more,  Ned,"  he  went  on,  as 
Mrs.  Leonard  left  them  alone  again.  "  We 
will  talk  about  little  Charlie,  who,  I  do  believe, 
would  hold  fast  by  me  through  any  and  every 
trouble.  He  had  been  with  me  on  Monday 


144  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


morning,  just  before  you  came  in,  assuring 
me,  with  that  earnest  little  face  of  his  pressed 
close  to  my  shoulder,  that  there  was  one  boy 
in  school  who  would  never  call  me  '  meek, 
and  that  was  Charlie  Grant." 

"  They  will  none  of  them  be  likely  to  call 
you  that  again,  after  your  encounter  with  the 
Doctor,"  said  Ned. 

"  I  am  not  glad  of  that,"  said  Allan,  slowly. 
"  As  I  told  Charlie,  I  can  see  no  reason  to  be 
ashamed  of  such  a  character  ;  and  if  the  boys 
understand  that  term  as  I  understand  it,  I 
shall  be  sorry  that  I  have  done  any  thing  to 
make  them  think  me  undeserving  of  it." 

"  What  a  strange  boy  you  are,  Allan  !  " 

"  In  what  way  ?  "  asked  Allan,  quietly. 

"  You  are  so  brave.  I  am  coming  to 
think,"  he  went  on,  comprehending  at  once 
Allan's  quick  look,  "that  you  have  been 
braver  in  your  strong,  patient  resistance  of 
the  opinion  of  the  whole  school,  than  you 
would  be  in  attempting  to  walk  up  the  face 


PATIENT  WAITING.  145 


of  Eagle  Rock  on  a  stormy  night.  But  I 
must  confess  I  do  not  understand  you.  Your 
temper  is  as  quick  as  mine  ;  your  enjoyment 
of  the  fellows'  good-will  quite  as  great  ;  and 
yet  you  keep  control  of  the  one,  and  set  at 
nought  the  other,  as  if  you  were  the  tamest 
and  most  indifferent  fellow  that  ever  lived." 

"  I  do  love  popularity,  Ned  ;  and  I  knew 
that  my  efforts  to  bear  patiently  with  Bentley 
would  not  do  much  toward  gaining  it  for  me. 
But  He  whom  I  love,  and  whom  I  want  to 
serve,  loved  those  who  strove  to  walk  peace- 
ably with  all  men,  and  gave  them  a  promise 
that  they  should  '  inherit  the  earth.'  By 
that  promise,  I  understand  that  He  will  give 
them  that  for  which  they  long  to  do  battle  ; 
that  if  they  will  bide  His  time,  bearing  all 
reproach  and  contempt,  rather  than  right 
themselves  by  any  unholy  means,  He'  will 
mike  their  cause  clear  as  the  noonday." 

"•Then  you  mean  to  wait,  and  not  to  lift  a 

finger  in  your  own  defence  ?  " 
10 


146  ALLAN  EAYWOOD. 


"  No  :  I  mean  to  use  my  whole  strength 
in  my  own  defence.  Christ  never  meant  us 
to  sit  down  idly,  and  let  the  world  crush  us  at 
its  pleasure.  He  did  not  intend  that  Christian 
men  should  have  no  rights  ;  but  He  did  in- 
tend that  those  rights  should  be  maintained 
in  a  spirit  of  gentleness  and  kindness.  When 
Bentley  took  my  property  out  of  my  hands, 
and  forcibly  placed  himself  in  the  way  of  my 
duty,  I  think  I  did  exactly  what  I  should 
have  done  in  putting  him  out  of  my  path  ; 
but  I  had  no  right  to  do  any  thing  more.  If 
he  had  struck  me,  I  hope  I  should  have  done 
no  more  than  I  did.  In  this  other  matter, 
I  shall  do  my  all  to  clear  myself;  but  if,  for 
that  end,  I  must  use  any  ungenerous  means, 
I  shall  try  to  leave  it  wholly  in  God's  hands, 
and  bear  the  shame  as  best  I  may.  I  shall 
be  righted  some  day." 

"  And  you  are  content  to  wait  ?  " 
"  I  have  a    strong    promise    on  which  to 
build  content,"  he  answered,  smiling  ;  "  and  J 


PATIENT  WAITING.  147 


must  try  to  make  my  building  as  strong  as 
its  foundation-stone." 

"  And  have  you  any  clew  on  which  to 
work?" 

"  Yes  :  I  have  one  clew,  but  it  is  too  slight 
for  me  to  speak  of,  even  to  you.  I  cannot 
.clear  myself  by  throwing  suspicion  on  an- 
other, unless  I  know  that  he  is  guilty." 

The  two  boys  looked  at  one  another  in 
silence,  each  knowing  full  well  the  thought 
that  lay  in  the  other's  mind.  After  a  while, 
Allan  said,  coloring  deeply  as  he  asked  the 
question,  "  Did  you  find  my  papers  ?  " 

"  Yes,  but  not  in  your  book.  They  were 
on  the  floor,  underneath  your  desk." 

"  Dropped  for  the  third  time,  eh  ?  I  shall 
take  care  how  I  make  a  portfolio  of  a  book 
again.  My  inveterate  carelessness  has  been 
a  sad  fault  for  me  this  time.  This  will  be  a 
lesson  for  my  life." 

Ned  handed  him  the  papers;  and,  after 
glancing  hastily  over  them,  Allan  was  laying 


148  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


them  aside,  when  a  thought  seemed  to  strike 
him. 

"  Ned,"  he  said,  "  these  lines  were  never 
meant  for  any  eyes  but  mine  ;  but  I  think 
that  it  may  happen  that  your  having  seen 
them  may  be  of  use  ta  me.  Last  Saturday, 
I  took  the  advice  which  you  have  been  giving 
me  for  so  long,  and  went  to  see  Dr.  Buford. 
Don't  be  startled.  He  only  told  me  what  I 
felt  sure  of  before  ;  and  that  was,  that  I  was 
not  likely  to  live  to  be  an  old  man." 

Ned  did  not  answer,  simply  because  he 
dared  not  ;  but  Allan  felt  the  arm  upon  which 
he  had  laid  his  hand  tremble  beneath  his 
touch. 

"  It  is  nothing  much,  Ned,  only  the  thoughts 
that  came  into  my  mind  after  my  talk  with 
the  doctor;  but  when  you  have  read  them, 
you  will  not  wonder  that,  thinking  this 
was  the  paper  which  Dr.  Drayton  had 
given  me,  I  refused  to  read  it  before  the 
school." 


PATIENT   WAITING.  149 


Ned  took  the  paper,  and  turning  a  little 
aside  from  Allan,  read  it. 

THE  MASTER'S   CALL. 

They  tell  me  a  solemn  story,  but  it  is  not  sad  to  me, 
For  in  its  sweet  unfolding  my  Saviour's  love  I  see. 
They  say  that,  at  any  moment,  the  Lord  of  Life  may  come, 
To  lift  me  up  from  this  cloud-land,  into  the  light  of  Home. 

They  say  I  may  have  no  warning,  I  may  not  even  hear 
The  rustling  of  His  garments  as  He  softly  draweth  near, 
Suddenly  —  in  a  moment  —  upon  my  ear  may  fall 
The  summons  to  leave  our  homestead,  to  answer  the  Mas- 
ter's call. 

Perhaps  He  will  come  in  the  noon-tide  of  some  bright  and 

sunny  day, 
When,  witli  dear  ones  all  around  me,  my  life  seems  bright 

and  gay  ; 

Pleasant  must  be  the  pathway,  easy  the  shining  road, 
Up  from  this  dimmer  sunlight  into  the  light  of  God. 

Perhaps  He  will  come  in  the  stillness  of  the  mild  and  quiet 

night, 
When  the  earth  is  calmly  sleeping  'neath  the  moonbeam's 

silvery  light, 
When  the  stars  are  softly  shining  o'er  slumbering  land  and 

sea,  — 
Perhaps,  in  that  holy  stillness,  the  Master  will  come  for 

me. 


150  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


I  think  I  would  rather  hear  it  —  that  voice  so  low  and 

sweet  — 

Calling  me  out  from  the  shadows,  my  blessed  Lord  to  meet, 
Up  through  the  glowing  splendors  of  a  starry,  earthly  night, 
To  "  see  the  King  in  His  beauty  "  in  a  land  of  purer  light. 

It  seemed  to  Allan  a  long  while  before 
Ned  turned  toward  him  again.  When  he 
did,  it  was  to  lay  his  hands  upon  his  shoulders, 
and  looking  full  in  his  face  to  say,  — 

"  Allan  Haywood,  last  Monday  morning 
I  called  you  a  coward.  I  believe  that  is  the 
first  lie  my  lips  have  ever  spoken.  To-day,  I 
tell  you,  as  I  shall  tell  all  who  know  you,  that 
you  are  the  bravest  fellow  Edward  Churchill 
has  ever  seen." 

"  Thank  you,"  said  Allan,  earnestly.  "  That 
has  done  me  more  good  than  all  the  medicine 
in  the  land  could  have  done." 

It  really  seemed  so  ;  for  when  Mrs.  Leon- 
ard came  up  to  his  room,  shortly  after  Ned 
had  left  it,  she  noticed  at  once  a  change  for 
the  better  in  his  tell-tale  face. 

"  Ned's  visit  has  done  you  good,"  she  said. 


PATIENT  WAITING.  151 


«  One  can  see  that  at  the  first  glance.  What 
has  he  been  doing  to  brighten  you  up  so 
much  ?  " 

"  Trusting  me,  that  is  all  ;  but  it  is  enough," 
was  Allan's  answer.  "  If  they  all  would  do 
that  until  I  have  a  chance  to  defend  myself, 
I  could  be  patient  with  this  weakness." 

But  all  did  not  do  that  ;  and  Allan  was 

made  to  feel  day  by  day  that  even  his  nearest 

• 

friends  were  at  least  doubtful  of  his  innocence. 
Laurence  Bronson,  Frank  Austin,  and  some 
others,  came  to  see  him,  and  were  kind  and 
friendly  in  their  manner;  but  none  of  them 
made  any  allusion  to  his  trouble,  and  Allan, 
feeling  sure  that  if  they  had  trusted  him  they 
would  have  given  him  the  support  and  com- 
fort of  their  sympathy,  was  as  silent  on  the 
subject  as  they. 

Another  circumstance  had  occurred  which 
seemed  to  add  a  link  to  the  chain  of  evidence 
which  was  forging  itself  against  him.  On 
his  return  from  the  Parsonage  on  Monday 


152  ALLAN  SAY  WOOD. 


evening,  Dr.  Drayton  had  sent  for  Allan's 
Euripides  in  order  to  ascertain  for  himself 
whether  the  boy  had  been  correct  in  telling 
Mr.  Leonard  that  the  book  contained  some 
lines  of  his  own.  Of  course,  he  did  not  find 
them  ;  and  the  boys  of  his  class  were  called 
into  the  study,  and  asked,  one  by  one,  if  they 
knew  any  thing  of  the  missing  papers.  Ed- 
ward Churchill  promptly  acknowledged  their 
possession,  hoping  thereby  to  silence  all 
farther  questionings  ;  but  the  Doctor  was  not 
so  easily  satisfied. 

"  Did  you  find  them  in  this  book  ?  "  he 
asked,  lifting  the  Euripides  from  the  table 
beside  him. 

"  No,  sir.  His  note  told  me  they  were  ly- 
ing in  it,  but  I  found  them  on  the  floor  be- 
neath his  desk.  They  must  have  been 
dropped  there." 

"Humph!"  said  the  Doctor.  "Young 
gentlemen,  can  any  of  you  throw  any  light 
on  this  painful  subject  ?  Bronson,  you  are 


PATIENT   WAITING.  153 


much  in  Hay  wood's  company.  Can  you 
give  me  any  help  ?  Can  you  assure  me  that 
you,  for  one,  have  no  reason  to  suspect  him, 
other  than  the  occurrences  which  took  place 
before  me  in  the  school-room  ?  " 

Laurence  hesitated.  Edward  gave  him  a 
quick,  impatient  look,  which,  unfortunately, 
the  Doctor  caught. 

"  I  will  have  no  collusion  here,"  he  ex- 
claimed angrily.  "  I  must  come  to  the  truth 
of  this  matter.  Bronson,  answer  my  ques- 
tion. Yes  or  no?" 

That  paper,  with  the  one  word  "  Parody  " 
written  on  it,  danced  before  Bronson's  troubled 
eyes;  but  not  for  worlds  would  he  have  said  a 
word  to  injure  Allan. 

"  I  cannot  answer,"  he  said  at  length.  "  I 
am  in  the  dark." 

"  And  the  darkness  in  which  you  stand 
has  thrown  another  shadow  over  Haywood," 
said  the  Doctor.  "  You  would  have  done  as 
well  to  have  answered  simply,  '  No.'  The 
class  is  dismissed." 


154  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


They  passed  quietly  out,  the  conviction 
fixed  on  almost  every  mind  that  Allan  was 
guilty,  and  that  Churchill  and  Bronson  were 
in  some  way  cognizant  of  his  misdemeanor. 

So  day  after  day  passed  on,  and  week  aftei 
week.  Allan's  spirits,  at  first  hopeful  and 
bright,  began  to  flag  and  sink  beneath  the 
weight  of  suspicion  against  which  he  was 
powerless  to  contend.  Dr.  Buford  saw,  with 
disappointment,  that  he  did  not  rally  as  he 
had  hoped  he  would  do  from  his  attack.  He 
regained  sufficient  strength  to  ride  out,  and 
even  to  walk  for  a  short  distance;  but  there 
he  seemed  to  pause. 

"  It  is  all  this  miserable  affair  at  the  Hall 
which  is  keeping  him  back,"  said  the  doctor 
to  Mr.  Leonard  one  afternoon.  "  Suppose 
you  take  him  away  for  a  few  weeks  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  Allan,  who  had  entered  the 
room  and  caught  the  last  words.  "  If  you 
are  talking  of  me,  I  cannot  leave  Graydon 
until  I  have  cleared  myself  of  this  charge.  It 


PATIENT   WAITING.  155 


would  do  rne  no  good.  Don't  order  me  away 
with  this  rope  about  my  neck,  doctor.  It  is 
this  which  is  choking  me,  and  the  knot  can  be 
untied  only  here." 

"  Well,  perhaps  you  are  right,"  said  the 
doctor.  "  But  it  seems  a  hard  knot  to  un- 
ravel." 

"  Yes  ;  but  it  will  be  unravelled  in  time," 
said  Allan;  "  and  I  will  try  to  wait  pa- 
tiently." 

And  so  he  did  wait,  and  wait  in  patience 
too.  But  it  was  weary  work,  —  work  that 
took  the  brightness  from  his  eyes,  and  the 
color  from  cheek  and  lip. 


VIII. 

BEN   THOMPSON. 

HT^HE  effect,  even  on  Allan's  life,  of  the  cir- 
cumstances connected  with  his  expulsion 
from  school,  was  scarcely  less  marked  than 
that  produced  upon  Edward  Churchill.  As 
week  after  week  passed  on,  and  nothing  was 
discovered,  his  bright  and  cheerful  face  grew 
more  and  more  dark  and  clouded,  and  his 
v/hole  manner  and  disposition  seemed  to  be 
growing  gloomy  and  morose.  Even  Lau- 
rence Bronson  and  Frank  Austin,  his  sworn 
allies,  could  do  nothing  to  draw  him  out  of 
his  reserve  and  depression.  They  did  not 
believe  fully  and  entirely  in  Allan's  inno- 
cence; and  so,  feeling  injured,  impatient,  and 
angry  on  his  account,  he  "  left  them  to  theii 


BKN  THOMPSON.  157 


folly,"  to  use  his  own  words.  Poor  fellow! 
if  there  had  only  been  something,  however 
little,  that  he  could  have  done,  it  would  not 
have  been  so  bad;  but  to  sit  patiently  down 
and  wait,  was  something  which  was  quite 
out  of  character  in  Ned's  case.  Every  sense 
was  perfectly  on  the  alert  to  discover  some 
clew,  however  trifling,  which  might  tend 
toward  the  explanation  of  the  strange  mys- 
tery ;  but  eye  and  ear,  and  all  else,  were  alike 
baffled  so  far.  No  watchfulness  or  care  had 
brought  him  a  single  step  farther  than  he  had 
been  on  the  day  of  Allan's  disgrace. 

Meantime,  Allan  was  failing  very  fast;  and 
the  doctor's  orders  that  he  should  be  taken 
from  the  scene  of  his  trouble  were  now  im- 
perative. It  was  the  first  week  in  June  ;  and 
the  boy,  in  spite  of  his  extreme  unwillingness, 
was  to  leave  home  some  time  during  the  next 
week.  He  had  confided  his  anxiety  to  Ned, 
saying  that  he  knew  he  would  only  be  the 
worse  for  the  journey;  and  Churchill  was 


158  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


almost  in  despair,  for  he  loved  Allan  as  if  he 
were  his  own  brother. 

It  was  Saturday;  and  determining  sud- 
denly, when  on  his  way  home,  that  he  would 
go  over  to  the  Parsonage  and  urge  one  more 
plea  against  the  journey,  begging  Mr.  Leon- 
ard to  postpone  it,  at  least,  for  another  week, 
he  sent  Thomas  back  with  his  horse,  saying 
that  he  preferred  to  walk.  Turning  oli"  from 
the  road,  he  took  a  side-path  leading  through 
the  woods,  which  would  shorten  his  walk  to 
the  Parsonage  by  two  miles,  at  least. 

But  he  had  scarcely  taken  more  than  a 
step  or  two  in  this  new  direction,  when  he 
again  altered  his  course  ;  for  coming  down  the 
narrow  pathway  directly  towards  him,  walking 
with  slow  step  and  bent  head,  he  saw  Arthur 
Bentley.  In  his  present  mood,  there  was  no 
one  in  the  world  whom  he  would  less  gladly 
meet.  The  path  was  so  narrow  that  one 
must  stand  aside  for  the  other  to  pass,  and, 
of  course,  words  of  one  kind  or  another  must 


BEN  THOMPSON.  159 


be  spoken  between  them.  To  speak  courte- 
ously to  him  was  out  of  the  question  for  Ned 
at  that  moment,  and  he  turned  into  the 
bushes,  not  having  been  noticed  by  Bentley, 
intending  to  wait  until  he  should  have  passed 
by,  and  then  to  go  on  his  way. 

Bentley  came  slowly  on.  For  some  weeks 
he  had  seemed  to  avoid  his  companions  more 
than  ever;  and  Ned,  who  watched  him  close- 
ly, had  seen  him,  more  than  once,  walking 
alone  in  this  absorbed,  preoccupied  manner; 
and  suspicions,  already  aroused,  were  not 
allayed  by  his  appearance.  That  something 
was  weighing  heavily  on  his  mind,  no  one 
who  saw  him  could  doubt;  and  Ned  felt 
morally  sure  that  he  knew  what  that  some- 
thing was.  As  he  stood  looking  at  him, 
completely  hidden  by  the  thick  shrubbery,  he 
heard  another  step  following  Bentley's,  and 
the  next  moment  a  rough  voice,  close  at 
Arthur's  side,  said,  "  Mr.  Bentley,  hold  up  a 
minute." 


160  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  What  a  guilty  start  !  "  thought  Ned,  as 
Arthur,  turning  quickly,  faced  the  speaker. 

But  it  did  not  need  that  one  should  of 
necessity  be  guilty  of  crime  because  he  started 
at  being  suddenly  addressed  by  such  ail  ill- 
looking  fellow  as  the  boy  whom  Arthur  now 
confronted.  They  both  knew  him  well  ;  for 
he  had  served  as  stable-boy  at  the  Hall,  and 
had  been  dismissed  for  dishonesty  some 
weeks  before. 

"  What  do  you  want  of  me,  Ben  ?  "  asked 
Arthur,  sharply.  "  I  am  in  a  hurry." 

"  Didn't  seem  so,"  said  Ben,  with  a  low, 
ugly  laugh.  "  Was  taking  things  pretty  slow 
I  thought.  Any  thing  on  your  mind,  Mr. 
B.  ?  " 

Bentley's  face  grew  red  with  passion,  then 
paled  again,  perhaps  with  terror,  but  he 
answered  hotly,  "  You  will  do  well  to  behave 
yourself,  Ben  Thompson,  or  you  may  be 
called  up  for  theft  yet." 

The  fellow  laughed  again,  more  insolently 


BEN  THOUfPSOtf.  16] 


than  before;  and  Ned  wished  most  heartily 
that  he  were  out  of  his  hiding-place. 

"  Perhaps  I  might  be  called  up,  sir,  and 
then  perhaps  I  mightn't  There's  worse 
things  done  in  the  world,  Mr.  Bentley,  than 
taking  a  few  oats  from  a  rich  man.  We  all 
know  what's  gone  on  in  the  Hall,  and  some 
on  us  knows  more  than  the  rest.  There's  a 
Drayton  boy,  sir,  as  lies  a  dyin'  with  the 
blame  of  another  feller's  doin's  fixed  on  him. 
I  wonder  how  that  other  feller  feels,  Mr. 
Bentley?" 

Arthur  turned  white  under  the  gaze  of  those 
half-shut,  squinting  eyes;  and  he  answered, 
more  wrathfully  than  before,  "  What  do  I 
care  for  your  wonder  ?  Let  me  pass  you  :  I 
will  not  be  kept  here  ;  "  and  he  attempted  to 
push  past  him,  but  Ben  threw  himself  still 
more  effectually  in  his  path. 

"  Perhaps  you'll  care  more  when  you  see 
this;"  and  he  held  a  crumpled  paper 
towards  him.  With  a  cry,  Arthur  sprang 
11 


162  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


to  catch  it;  but  his  adversary  was  too 
quick  for  him. 

"  No,  no,  sir.  Not  yet,"  he  said,  taunt- 
ingly, holding  it  behind  him  ;  but  he  did  not 
know  his  foe. 

In  a  moment,  Arthur  had  thrown  himself 
upon  him,  borne  him  to  the  ground,  and 
wrested  the  paper  from  his  grasp.  At  the 
same  time,  Ned,  unable  longer  to  bear  the 
position  of  a  spy,  came  out  and  stood  on  the 
pathway  beside  them  ;  but  neither  of  the  two 
combatants  saw  him. 

"  Have  you  any  other  papers  ?  "  asked 
Arthur,  in  a  low,  fierce  whisper.  Not  a 
threat  did  he  utter;  but  the  coward  who  lay 
beneath  him,  terrified  by  his  sudden  over- 
throw, saw  enough  in  his  face,  and  he  quailed 
before  him,  frightened  as  a  child. 

"Yes,  yes,"  he  gasped:  "only  let  me  up, 
and  I  will  tell  you.  I  only  wanted  to  make 
a  little  something  out  of  them,  Mr.  Bentley. 
Say  you'll  give  me  a  dollar,  and  I'll  give  'em 


BEN  THOMPSON.  163 


up.  I  found  'em  here  in  this  very  path  the 
day  the  Doctor  raised  all  the  fuss." 

Yes  :  he  remembered  it  well.  How  he  had 
gone  out  to  destroy  the  packet  of  papers,  and, 
on  corning  to  the  water  in  which  he  had 
meant  to  sink  them,  had  found  "the  packet 
gone.  He  remembered  it  all.  His  sickening 
terror,  his  search,  and  then  the  certainty  which 
had  gradually  grown  upon  him  that  they  had 
been  irrecoverably  lost. 

But  Ben  knew  nothing  of  all  this.  He 
saw  nothing  but  the  colorless,  dark  face  above 
him,  heard  nothing  but,  —  "  Where  are  the 
others  ?  "  asked  in  a  tone  of  concentrated 
fury,  which  fairly  made  him  quake  with  terror. 

"  At  home.  Oh,  Mr.  Bentley  !  let  me  up. 
I'll  bring  them  to  you,  every  one." 

Bentley  did  not  fear  but  that  he  would 
keep  his  word,  for  the  craven  face  was  abso- 
lutely abject  in  its  fear;  but  he  added  the  one 
inducement  which,  as  he  knew,  would  have 
weight  with  the  covetous  boy. 


164  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


"  Go  and  get  them  at  once.  If  you  bring 
them  to  me  untouched,  I  will  give  you  two 
dollars.  Here,  on  the  spot.  You  promise  ?  " 

"  I  promise." 

Beritley  released  him  from  the  tight  grasp 
in  which  he  had  held  him  all  through,  and, 
rising  to  his  feet,  allowed  him"  to  rise  in  his 
turn. 

"  Now  go,"  he  said,  "  and  I  will  wait  until 
you  come  back.  Be  quick  ;  "  and  he  watched 
him,  as  he  slunk  off,  with  unutterable  con- 
tempt written  on  every  feature  of  his  face. 

But,  after  all,  what  was  there  to  choose 
between  the  two  ?  The  one,  stalwart,  strong, 
and  handsome,  —  the;  other,  small,  weak,  and 
evil  in  look  ;  but  the  same  mean,  pitiful  spirit 
dwelt  in  both. 

"  You  do  well  to  look  scornfully  after  that 
wretch,  Arthur  Bentley.  But  how  do  you 
suppose  Drayton  boys  will  look  at  you  ?  " 

If  a  voice  had  sounded  from  the  sky,  Arthur 
Bentley  could  not  have  been  more  utterly 


BEN   THOMPSON.  165 


appalled.  He  had  thought  himself  entirely 
alone  ;  and  turned  to  find  Ned  Churchill  close 
at  his  side.  Not  another  word  was  spoken. 
For  a  moment,  the  two  boys  stood  and  gazed 
at  one  another,  —  fierce  determination  in  the 
one  face,  utter  desperation  in  the  other.  The 
next  moment,  Arthur  had  sprung  like  a  tiger 
upon  Ned. 

But  he  had  no  cowardly  Ben  Thompson 
to  deal  with  now.  Ned's  natural  strength 
was  nearly  equal  to  his  own  ;  and  Ned  was 
fresh,  while  he  was  in  part  exhausted  by  his 
effort  to  control  Ben's  struggles.  They  went 
down  together,  but  Ned  was  uppermost. 

"  Bentley,"  he  said,  with  great  effort  forc- 
ing himself  to  speak  quietly,  "  promise  on 
your  honor  that  those  papers  shall  be  given 
by  Ben  to  me,  and  I  will  let  you  up.  If  not, 
you  lie  here  until  I  can  obtain  help.  Will 
you  promise?" 

"  No  !  "  came  the  answer,  sharp  and  loud. 
Ned's  reply  was  a  long,  shrill,  piercing  call. 


166  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


Little  Charlie  Grant,  coming  singing  down 
the  main  road,  heard  it,  but  could  not  tell 
whence  it  came.  He  tried  to  imitate  it,  and 
succeeded  so  well  that  Ned  heard  him,  and 
calling  again  and  again,  guided  him  to  the 
spot. 

The  child  stood  still  in  utter  bewilderment, 
as,  dashing  into  the  pathway  in  wondering 
haste,  he  saw  Bentley  stretched  upon  the 
ground,  and  Ned  holding  him  down. 

"Why,  Churchill!"  he  exclaimed.  "Two 
Seniors  !  What  will  Dr.  Drayton  say  ?  " 

"  Hush,  Charlie.  Do  just  as  I  tell  you,  and 
we'll  save  Allan  yet.  Don't  stop  to  question, 
but  rush  down  to  old  Jacob  Thompson's,  and 
tell  him  to  keep  Ben  a  prisoner  at  home  un- 
til I  come  ;  and  don't  let  him  destroy  any 
papers.  Tell  him  Allan  Haywood's  life  de- 
pends on  it.  Fly  now,  little  fleet-foot.  Mr. 
Acton  has  gone  to  the  village.  If  you  meet 
him,  send  him  here." 

Not  an  instant  did  Charlie  wait  for  ques- 


BEX  THOMPSON.  167 


tion  or  parley.  Allan  —  his  beloved  Allan  — 
might  yet  be  saved  ;  and  he  might  aid  in  the 
work.  Surely  those  little  feet,  renowned  in 
the  school  for  their  swiftness,  never  flew  over 
the  ground  so  rapidly  as  they  did  on  that 
bright  June  morning.  Only  once  they  paused. 
Meeting  Mr.  Acton  near  the  village,  he 
stopped,  and  directing  him  to  the  spot  where  he 
had  left  Ned,  told  him  simply  that  he  was 
needed  there,  and  rushed  off  again  on  his 
errand.  He  was  just  in  time.  As  he  burst 
into  Jacob  Thompson's  cobbler-shop,  Ben 
was  leaving  it.  The  little  fellow  put  out 
his  hand  to  stop  him,  for  he  was  fairly 
breathless. 

"  My  father's  in  the  shop.  He'll  attend  to 
you,"  said  Ben,  gruffly,  trying  to  pass  him. 

"I  —  don't  —  want  —  your  —  father.  — 
Stop  —  a  —  minute." 

"  I  can't  wait:  I'm  in  a  hurry,"  said  Ben  ; 
and  he  tried  to  drag  away  his  sleeve  which 
Charlie  was  holding  tightly. 


168  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


"  What's  the  matter  here  ?  "  said  the  cob- 
bler, coming  out  from  his  shop,  attracted  by 
the  noise.  "  In  trouble  again,  Ben  ?  "  and  he 
looked  anxiously  from  his  son  to  Charlie's 
crimsoned  face. 

"  O,  Mr.  Thompson  !  "  gasped  Charlie  : 
"  don't  let  him  go.  Mr.  Churchill  says  to 
keep  him  here  till  he  comes.  It's  something 
about  Allan  Haywood  :  I  don't  know  what. 
Oh,  keep  him,  keep  him  !  "  he  entreated,  for 
Ben's  arm  was  forcing  itself  from  his  grasp. 
"  Somehow  Churchill  expects  to  clear  Allan. 
Don't  let  him  go  ;  "  and  the  excited,  wearied 
child  burst  into  an  agony  of  crying. 

"  Go  into  the  shop,  Ben  ;  and  if  I  find 
you've  had  to  do  with  this  business  of  Mr. 
Haywood's,  you'll  suffer  for  it,"  said  his  father, 
sternly.  "  And  you,  Master  Grant,  don't  take 
on,  but  come  in  too.  What's  it  all  about  ? 
My  boy's  a  bad  boy,  but  I  can't  believe  he's 
had  any  hand  in  this  business.  Somebody's 
played  Mr.  Haywood  a  mean  trick,  and  a 


BEN  THOMPSON.  169 


wicked  one  too  ;  but  what  could  my  Ben 
have  to  do  with  it  ?  " 

"  Ay  :  I'd  like  to  know  ?  "  asked  Ben,  rough- 
ly :  "  what  do  you  mean  to  turn  on  me  for  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,"  said  Charlie,  "  what  it  all 
means  myself.  All  I  know  is,  that  Churchill 
and  Bentley  have  had  a  quarrel  over  it,  and 
that  Churchill  told  me  to  rush  over  here  to 
keep  Ben  from  leaving  until  he  should  come. 
And  he  told  me,  Mr.  Thompson,  to  tell  you 
that  Haywood's  life  might  depend  on  it,  and 
that  you  was  to  be  sure  not  to  let  Ben  destroy 
the  papers." 

"  What  papers  ?  "  asked  the  father. 

"  I  don't  know  :  that's  all  he  said.  He 
was  holding  Bentley  down,  and  couldn't  say 
much." 

"  Ben  Thompson,"  said  his  father,  "  you've 
brought  evil  enough  on  me  already,  but 
if  you've  had  any  hand  in  this  matter,  it  will 
go  hard  with  you.  If  you  have  papers 
that  Mr.  Churchill  wants,  that's  any  way  con- 


170  ALLAN  EAYWOOD. 


nected  with  the  thing,  you  had  best,  for  your 
own  sake,  give  them  up  at  once.  The  folks 
at  the  Manor  House  are  the  last  people  in 
the  world  for  us  to  ansrer  after  all  their  kind- 

o 

ness  to  us  when  we  were  sick  and  poor. 
What  have  you  got,  boy,  that  Mr.  Ned  wants  ?  " 

It  was  always  Ben's  principle  to  be  on  the 
winning  side.  He  had  given  his  promise  to 
Arthur  Bentley  to  deliver  the  papers  into  his 
hand,  but  that  was  when  he  felt  himself  com- 
pletely in  his  power.  Now  it  seemed  Arthur 
was  on  the  losing  side  of  the  battle,  and  his 
father's  face  looked  very  hard  and  severe. 
He  hesitated,  and  in  his  hesitation  his  father 
saw  his  guilt. 

"  Give  me  the  papers  instantly  !  "  he  said, 
seizing  him  by  the  shoulder. 

"  But  Mr.  Bentley  promised  me  two  dol- 
lars for  them,"  whimpered  the  boy;  "and 
they're  his,  anyway." 

"  I  don't  care  whose  they  are.  They're 
his  for  no  good  if  he  had  to  buy  them  from 


BEN   THOMPSON.  171 


you,  you  young  good-for-nothing!  Give 
them  up,  or  I'll  search  you  on  the  spot." 

And  so  it  happened  that  when  Edward 
and  Mr.  Acton  arrived  at  Thompson's  shop, 
their  work  was  done  for  them.  Thompson 
handed  Edward  the  packet  of  papers,  beseech- 
ing him  to  spare  his  son,  if  Haywood  could 
be  vindicated  without  his  punishment  ;  and 
Edward  promised  ;  "  for,  Mr.  Ned,"  said  the 
honest  man,  "  I've  always  done  my  best,  and 
kept  my  name  up.  poor  as  I  am." 

Dr.  Drayton  was  walking  slowly  up  and 
down  the  length  of  his  study,  deep  in  thought, 
when  a  loud  rap  at  the  door  startled  him  out 
of  his  reverie. 

"  Come  in  !  "  he  said,  and  Mr.  Acton  and 
Edward  Churchill  answered  the  summons. 

The  Doctor  looked  somewhat  surprised,  for 
he  was  quite  aware  that  Ned  had  purposely 
avoided,  so  far  as  possible,  all  intercourse 
with  him  since  Allan's  dismissal  from  school. 

"  May  I  have    ten    minutes'  conversation 


172  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


with  you,  sir  ?  "  asked  Churchill.  "  It  is 
very  important." 

"  Certainly,"  replied  the  Doctor,  stiffly. 

There  was  nothing  very  encouraging  in  his 
tone,  but  Edward  went  on,  unheeding,  — 

"  There  is  a  packet  of  papers,  sir,  belonging 
to  Bentley  of  our  class.  I  do  not  know  what 
they  are  ;  but  they  relate  in  some  way  to 
Allan  Haywood." 

"  How  did  they  come  into  your  posses- 
sion ?  "  asked  the  Doctor,  coolly. 

Ned  told  him  all  that  he  knew  from  the 
moment  of  his  leaving  the  Hall  until  that  in 
•which  Thompson  had  given  the  papers  into 
his  hand.  Dr.  Drayton  stood  and  listened  to 
him  in  silence,  and  when  he  had  ended  his 
story,  asked  quietly,  "  And  this  is  all  that  you 
know  about  these  papers?  You  have  not 
seen  them,  nor  heard  what  they  contain  ?" 

"  No,  sir.  I  know  nothing.  I  only  be- 
lieve." 

"  You  may  have  reason  to  suspect,  but  you 


BEN  THOMPSON.  173 


have  no  right  to  believe  until  you  know 
more,"  said  the  Doctor.  "  Send  both  the 
Bentleys  to  me  ;  and  you,  Churchill,  remain 
within  call." 

But  when  they  had  left  the  room,  the  Doc- 
tor sat  suddenly  down,  and  leaning  his  head 
on  his  hands  almost  groaned  out  the  words, 
"  Oh,  if  I  had  but  trusted  him  !  Poor  boy  ! 
poor  boy  !  " 

For  full  two  hours  after  he  had  conveyed 
Dr.  Drayton's  message  to  the  elder  and 
younger  Bentley,  Edward  Churchill  sat  wait- 
ing in  a  little  room  adjoining  the  study,  with- 
out being  summoned  to  confront  the  two 
brothers.  He  could  hear,  from  time  to  time, 
the  sound  of  the  Doctor's  voice  through  the 
partition  wall,  deep  and  stern,  but  never 
raised  to  a  loud  key  ;  and  once  he  heard  the 
voice  of  Professor  Bentley  speaking  passion- 
ately, whether  to  the  Doctor  or  his  brother 
he  could  not  tell.  After  a  while,  the  door  of 
the  study  opened,  and  closed  again,  and  some 


174  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


one  —  Arthur,  he  thought  —  passed  slowly 
through  the  hall,  and  up  the  stairs.  A  few 
moments  after,  Dr.  Drayton's  heavy  step 
crossed  the  floor,  traversed  the  hall,  and  came 
to  the  door  of  the  room  in  which  he  sat 
waiting.  It  paused  there  for  a  moment,  and 
when  at  length  he  entered  the  room  Ed- 
ward wondered  if  he  had  been  forced  to  wait 
to  recover  composure,  for  the  expression  of 
the  Doctor's  face  was  strangely  changed  since 
he  had  last  seen  it. 

"  Churchill,"  he  said,  as  the  boy  rose  to  meet 
him,  "  I  have  kept  you  waiting  here  unnec- 
essarily. I  had  supposed  that  your  evidence 
might  be  needed  in  this  wretched  case.  But 
I  was  mistaken.  Bentley  has  confessed 
every  thing  ;  not  in  penitence,  I  fear,  but  the 
papers  you.  placed  in  my  hands  convicted 
him  beyond  a  doubt,  not  only  of  having  writ- 
ten that  parody,  but  of  having  forged  Hay- 
wood's  handwriting  in  order  to  accomplish 
his  expulsion  from  the  Hall.  The  packet 


BEN  THOMPSON.  175 


contained  the  first  rough  draft  of  the  parody 
in  Bentley's  own  hand,  corrected  and  revised, 
and  various  other  papers  in  which  he  had 
imitated  Haywood's  writing.  Some  of  them 
were  perfect  imitations,  fac-similes  of  the 
writing  in  an  old  composition  of  Allan's 
of  which  he  had  gained  possession." 

Edward  stood  and  listened  in  silence,  as 
the  Doctor  said  all  this  in  a  low,  sad  voice, 
whose  gentleness  told  the  depth  of  his  distress. 
As  he  had  sat  there  waiting,  he  had  imagined 
to  himself  his  interview  with  Dr.  Drayton 
after  Bentley's  conviction,  —  for  convicted  he 
knew  that  he  must  be.  He  had  pictured  his 
own  triumphant  bearing  as  his  master  owned 
himself  in  error,  and  his  proud  assertion  that 
he  had  always  known  that  Allan  would  be 
proved  innocent.  But  as  he  listened  to  the 
quiet  voice,  and  looked  up  into  the  troubled 
face,  he  felt  any  thing  but  triumphant.  He 
stood  a  moment,  wondering  what  he  ought 
to  do,  and  then  spoke  out  his  sympathy  by 


176  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


saying  simply,  "  I  am  so  sorry  for  you, 
sir." 

"  Yes,"  said  the  Doctor,  in  the  same  low 
tone.  "  You  may  well  be  sorry  for  me,  my 
boy.  There  is  no  sadder  heart  to-day  in  this 
village  than  mine.  God  grant  that  my  ter- 
rible mistake  may  not  have  shortened  that 
poor  boy's  life." 

They  stood  together  in  silence  again  for 
some  moments  ;  and  then  the  Doctor  said,  lay- 
ing his  hand  on  Edward's  shoulder,  — 

"  I  owe  it  to  you,  to  make  you  the  bearer 
of  the  good  tidings  to  Allan.  Tell  Sam  to 
saddle  my  horse  for  you,  and  ride  over  at 
once." 

Edward  hesitated.  He  longed  to  be  the 
herald  of  such  glorious  news,  but  —  could  it 
be  that  his  feeling  of  something  near  akin  to 
hatred  of  his  master  had  changed  so  entirely  ? 
Yes,  it  was  so.  In  his  intense  pity  for  the 
man  whose  heart  was  almost  broken  by  the 
news  which  had  been  such  a  perfect  joy  to 


BEN   THOMPSON.  177 


him,  he  said,  "  Go  over  yourself,  Dr.  Drayton. 
It  will  be  a  comfort  to  you.  I  will  see  Allan 
later." 

"  No  :  I  hardly  know  whether  it  would  be 
a  comfort  to  see  him  in  the  fulness  of  his  first 
delight,"  said  the  master.  "  It  would  only 
show  me  how  deep  his  grief  has  been.  No: 
you  have  been  true  to  him  all  through, 
Churchill.  Go  to  him  now,  and  tell  him,  if 
you  can,  how  bitter  my  sorrow  is.  I  will  see 
him  toward  evening." 


12 


IX. 


REPARATION. 

A  LLAN  HAYWOOD  was  lying  on  the 
couch  in  the  sitting-room,  idly  watching 
Mrs.  Leonard's  busy  fingers  as  they  stitched 
rapidly  away  at  her  sewing,  and  listening  as 
idly  to  the  music  of  her  sweet  voice,  as  she 
sang  softly  over  her  work.  He  was  supremely 
happy  that  afternoon,  for  Dr.  Buford  had,  in 
the  morning,  given  his  consent  to  his  remain- 
ing at  home.  "  Simply  because  he  is  too  far 
gone  to  be  helped  by  the  change,"  the  doctor 
had  said,  in  answer  to  Mr.  Leonard's  inquir- 
ies ;  "  and  we  may  as  well  let  him  have  his 
own  way  during  the  few  weeks  he  has  to 
live,  if  it  be  any  comfort  to  him." 

Allan  knew  he  was  worse,  for  he  had  seen 


REPARATION.  179 


the  look  of  anxiety  in  the  doctor's  face  when 
he  had  examined  his  lungs  that  morning;  but 
even  if  he  had  heard  the  words  spoken  to  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Leonard,  taking  from  them  the  last 
remnant  of  hope,  he  would  have  been  just 
as  content.  So  long  as  he  might  remain  at 
home,  he  was  happy. 

"  Who  is  that?"  he  asked,  as  the  clatter  of 
a  horse's  hoofs  sounded  on  the  road.  "  Some 
one  is  coming  on  the  gallop.  Why,  it  is 
Ned  !  See  how  flushed  and  excited  he  looks," 
he  added,  as  his  friend  rode  past  the  window 
to  the  door.  "  And  on  Dr.  Drayton's  horse 
too  !  Oh  !  Aunt  Carrie,  something  must  have 
happened." 

"  Don't  do  so,  Allan  dear,"  said  Mrs.  Leon- 
ard, laying  her  hand  on  him,  as  he  started 
up  with  flushed  face  and  trembling  hands  : 
"you  are  so  on  the  watch  for  some  news 
that  the  least  trifle  destroys  all  your  com- 
posure. Do  wait,  my  boy." 

"  I  think  I  have  not  much  longer  to  wait, 


180  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


Aunt  Carrie,"  he  said,  excitedly.  "  I  am 
sure,  quite  sure,  that  Ned  has  come  with 
good  news.  Oh,  there  he  is  !  Well,  Ned  ?  " 

Ned  had  intended  to  enter  very  quietly  and 
soberly,  and  to  begin  his  story  very  deliber- 
ately, slowly  progressing  by  degrees  to  its 
climax;  but  that  delighted,  expectant  face, 
the  outstretched  hands,  the  joyous  voice, 
scattered  all  his  rhetoric  to  the  winds.  He 
hesitated,  then  began  to  speak,  and  hesitated 
again,  looking  helplessly  at  Mrs.  Leonard, 
afraid  of  exciting  Allan,  and  not  knowing 
how  to  proceed. 

"  Tell  me,"  said  Allan,  quietly,  his  com- 
posure returning  instantly  at  sight  of  Ned's 
confusion.  "  I  think  I  know  all  about  it. 
Ned,  am  I  cleared  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Ned,  desperately  :  "  Fully  and 
entirely  cleared  !  " 

He  did  not  spring  up  nor  cry  out.  He 
only  turned  his  face  to  the  pillow,  and  lay 
very  still.  Not  a  word  more  was  spoken  for 


SEPARATION.  181 


many  minutes;  then  he  lifted  his  face,  and 
laid  his  hand  on  Ned's. 

"  How  did  you  do  it  ?  "  he  said,  with  a 
bright,  happy  smile. 

"  How  do  you  know  I  did  it  at  all  ?  "  said 
Ned,  smiling  back  at  him.  "  But  it  is  a  mis- 
erable story  to  tell,"  he  went  on  gravely. 
"  You  have  been  most  awfully  treated,  Allan  ; 
but  I  do  believe  I  am  as  sorry  for  Dr.  Dray- 
ton  as  I  am  for  you."  And  then  he  told  him 
all  the  story. 

"  I  knew  it  must  come  right,"  said  Allan* 
when  Edward  ceased  speaking.  "  Poor  Dr. 
Drayton  I  Far-seeing  and  perfectly  just  as 
he  generally  is,  this  must  be  very  hard  upon 
him.  And  Bentley  too  !  How  the  fellow 
must  feel  !  " 

"  Bentley  indeed  !  "  exclaimed  Ned,  indig- 
nantly. "  He'll  know  what  it  is  to  be  ex- 
pelled now.  And  he'll  be  followed  by  the 
hatred  of  the  whole  school  besides.  Even 
Will  Seaton,  his  sworn  ally  and  defender, 


182  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


says  that  he  will  never  speak  to  him  again. 
If  any  thing  could  make  me  sorry  for  Bentley, 
it  would  be  Will's  throwing  him  off;  for  I 
do  believe  that  Seaton  is  the  only  person  in 
the  world,  besides  his  brother,  whom  Arthur 
loves.  But  it  is  no  worse  than  he  deserves, 
the  miserable  scamp  !  " 

"  Hush,  Ned,  hush  !  "  said  Allan,  gently. 
"  I  can't  help  but  pity  him." 

"/can,  and  help  it  very  easily  too.  If  he 
were  sorry,  you  might  pity  him  ;  but  the  fel- 
low don't  care  a  fig  about  you,  Allan.  He'd 
let  you  suffer  this  right  over  again  if  he 
could." 

"  Perhaps  he  is  more  sorry  than  the  Doctor 
thinks.  He  was  always  very  reserved  and 
proud,  you  know,  and  he  would  hide  his  feel- 
ings if  he  could." 

"  I  don't  believe  they'll  be  so  overpowering 
that  he'll  find  much  trouble  in  hiding  them," 
replied  Ned,  almost  angrily. 

Allan     laughed     a    joyous     little     laugh. 


REPARATION.  183 


"  Well,  never  mind  Bentley.  I  am  so  happy 
that  I'm  ready  to  think  the  best  of  everybody 
and  every  thing.  You'll  let  me  be  sorry  for 
the  Doctor,  won't  you  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Ned,  pleasantly.  "  I  can't  say 
a  word  there,  for  I'm  so  sorry  for  him  myself. 
Poor  old  Doc!  He'll  find  it  pretty  hard  to 
come  down  to  an  apology.  I'd  like  to  hear 
what  he  has  to  say  to  you." 

But  neither  Ned  nor  any  one  else,  save 
Allan  himself,  heard  what  Dr.  Drayton  had 
to  say.  He  came  into  the  house  shortly  after 
Ned  had  left  (the  boy  having  hurried  home 
to  tell  Mary  the  joyful  news),  with  the  two 
Bentleys  ;  the  Professor  having  insisted  upon 
Arthur  going  with  them,  and  asking  Allan's 
forgiveness. 

Ronald  Bentley's  anger,  mortification,  and 
really  sincere  grief,  when  he  found  out  the 
truth  with  regard  to  Allan,  could  scarcely  find 
words  in  which  to  express  themselves;  and 
his  scathing  scorn  fell  like  a  tempest  upon 


184  ALLAN  HAYWOOD. 


Arthur's  unhappy  head.  No  words  were  too 
hard  or  cruel  for  his  use  ;  and  the  boy  was 
almost  stunned  by  the  storm  which  had  so 
suddenly,  and,  so  far  as  his  brother  was  con- 
cerned, so  unexpectedly  broken  upon  him. 
But  instead  of  subduing  or  awing  him,  it 
seemed  only  to  render  him  hard  and  reckless. 
He  had  remained  quietly  in  a  lonely  room, 
according  to  Dr.  Drayton's  orders,  ever  since 
his  interview  with  him,  and  had  as  obediently 
followed  his  brother,  when  commanded  by 
him  to  accompany  them  to  the  Parsonage. 
And  now,  when  met  in  the  hall  by  Mr.  Leon- 
ard, he  stood  looking  the  image  of  dogged 
resolution,  plainly  quite  determined  to  brave 
it  out  to  the  end. 

Mr.  Leonard  looked  surprised,  as  well  he 
might;  but  Dr.  Drayton,  coming  quickly  for- 
ward, said,  —  "Professor  Bentley  felt  that  he 
must  see  Allan,  if  only  for  a  moment.  But 
—  but  —  would  he  be  willing  to  see  me 
alone?" 


REPARATION.  185 


This  hesitating,  embarrassed,  almost  timid 
man,  —  could  it  be  Dr.  Drayton  of  Drayton 
Hall?  If  Mr.  Leonard  had  seen  him  a 
moment  later,  when  he  entered  the  sitting- 
room  where  Allan  still  lay  upon  the  sofa,  he 
would  have  been  even  less  able  to  identify  him 
with  his  ward's  calm,  self-poised,  immovable 
teacher. 

•Allan  rose  to  meet  him  with  a  beaming 
face,  but  Dr.  Drayton,  hurrying  forward,  put 
him  gently  back. 

"  Do  not  rise,"  he  said.  "  I  have  only  come 
—  only  come  —  I  want  to  say  "  —  And  then 
the  strong,  set  face  broke,  and  he  bent  over 
the  boy  with  a  great  sob  surging  up  from  his 
very  heart. 

"  Oh,  Haywood,  Haywood  !  "  was  all  he 
said. 

"  Don't  try  to  tell  me  what  you  want  to 
say,  Doctor,"  said  Allan,  laying  his  thin  hand 
on  the  master's  shoulder.  "  I  know  what  it 
is.  I  am  very,  very  glad  and  thankful." 


186  ALLAN  HAT  WOOD. 


"  And  I  am  sorry,  grieved  to  my  very  heart, 
Haywood,  that  I  have  been  so  fearfully  mis- 
taken. Can  you  forgive  me?  Through  all 
the  years  of  my  life  as  a  teacher,  justice  and 
impartiality  have  been  the  virtues  which  I 
have  aimed  most  earnestly  to  exhibit,  —  the 
virtues  to  which  I  had  vainly  flattered  myself 
I  had  attained.  And  now  "  — 

"  And  now  you  are  showing  that  you  have 
not  flattered  yourself,  sir.  This  has  been  a 
terrible  grief  and  sorrow  to  me,  Dr.  Drayton, 
and  I  confess  I  thought  you  too  severe  ;  but  I 
have  never  doubted,  for  a  moment,  that  my 
old  friend  was  a  noble,  true-hearted  rnan." 

"  And  you  can  forgive  him  ?  " 

"  I  can.  I  have  already  forgiven  all  who 
have  had  any  thing  to  do  in  the  matter.  It 
is  time  for  me  to  forgive  every  one  who  has 
ever  done  me  any  wrong,"  he  added  gently. 
"  You  know  that,  I  suppose,  Doctor?  " 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  very  sadly.  "  Allan,  tell 
me  truly  this  one  thing.  Was  this  trouble 


REPARATION.  187 


fixed  upon  you  before  the  time  of  your  unjust 
punishment?" 

"Yes,  sir,  it  was,"  said  Allan,  looking 
frankly  into  his  face.  "  Fixed  beyond  any 
thing  more  than  temporary  alleviation.  Do 
not  distress  yourself  with  any  such  mistaken 
idea  as  that  this  has  brought  my  illness  upon 
me.  Now,  Doctor,  will  you  do  me  one 
favor?" 

"  I  wish  I  could  do  you  a  hundred,"  was 
the  quick  response. 

"  Thank  you.  One  will  do,"  said  Allan, 
with  a  smile.  "  Keep  Bentley  in  the  school. 
Don't  expel  him." 

"  He  is  already  expelled,"  said  Dr.  Drayton, 
his  face  darkening;  "at  least,  so  far  as  his 
own  knowledge  of  the  fact  goes.  He  is  to 
be  publicly  disgraced  at  the  first  session  of 
the  school  on  Monday." 

"  Where  will  he  go  ?  What  school  will 
take  a  boy  who  has  been  expelled  from  Dray- 
ton  ?  " 


188  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


"  None,  I  presume.  Bentley  knew  what  he 
was  doing;  now  he  must  suffer  its  conse- 
quences." 

"  And  all  his  fine  talents  will  be  thrown 
away  and  wasted.  Dr.  Drayton,  you  will 
drive  him  to  despair." 

"  While  you  stand  and  plead  for  him," 
said  the  master,  with  a  husky  sound  in  his 
voice  which  gave  Allan  some  hope.  "  Will 
you  see  Professor  Bentley  ?  He  would  like 
to  speak  with  you  for  one  moment." 

"  Let  him  come,"  said  Allan.  "  He  will 
help  me  to  plead  for  his  brother." 

Professor  Bentley  was  a  hard,  unrelenting 
man,  but  he  was  an  honorable  gentleman  ; 
and  it  was  with  a  face  crimsoned  with  shame 
that  he  spoke  his  few  words  of  humble  apology 
for  the  unwittingly  cruel  part  he  had  played. 
Allan's  forgiveness  was  as  quickly  spoken. 

"Professor  Bentley,"  said  Dr.  Drayton,  as 
soon  as  Allan  had  finished  speaking,  "  Hay- 
wood  has  been  asking  a  favor  of  me.  He 


REPARATION.  189 


would  have  me  recall  Arthur's  expulsion  from 
th:  Hall." 

"  And  I  would  have  you  hold  to  it.  I  will 
never  give  my  consent  to  such  recall.  He 
has  proved  himself  a  false,  low,  mean  fellow. 
Let  him  consort  with  such,  and  not  with 
gentlemen." 

His  face  was  terrible  in  its  wrath,  but 
Allan  was  determined  to  win  his  point. 

"  Mr.  Bentley,"  he  said,  "  you  would  not 
refuse  a  drink  of  cool  water  to  a  dying  man, 
I  know.  I  am  dying." 

"  And  thirsting  for  this  cooling  draught," 
said  Dr.  Draytdn,  gently.  "  Bentley,  let  him 
have  his  way.  I  will  call  Arthur." 

"  Is  he  there?  "  asked  Allan.  "  Then  please 
leave  rne  with  him."  And  they  went  away, 
and  sent  Arthur  to  him. 

What  passed  between  the  two  boys,  no 
one  ever  knew.  Arthur  remained  in  the  sit- 
ting-room but  a  few  moments  ;  and  when  he 
came  out,  he  did  not  speak  save  to  answer 


190  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


his  brother's  hastily  spoken  question,  "  Did 
you  ask  his  forgiveness  ?  " 

"I  did  not  need  to,"   he  said.      "It  was 
given." 


X 


THE  "STARRY  NIGHT.*' 

~*WO  weeks  had  passed  quickly  by,  and 
again,  on  one  beautiful  Saturday  morn- 
ing, Edward  Churchill  was  riding  rapidly 
over  the  road  lying  between  the  Hall  and 
the  Parsonage.  But  now  his  face  told  no 
story  of  eager  gladness  and  joy ;  for  a  mes- 
senger had  come  to  him  from  Mrs.  Leonard, 
to  tell  him  that  Allan  was  dying,  and  wanted 
to  see  him. 

Those  two  weeks  had  been  days  of  perfect 
happiness  to  Allan.  Restored,  of  course,  to 
the  full  confidence  and  friendship  of  his  old 
companions,  and  treated  by  all  with  a  loving 
tenderness  which  strove  to  make  up  for  past 
coldness  and  injustice,  the  boy's  sick-room 


192  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


had  grown  a  little  Paradise  to  him.  Mr. 
Leonard  had  feared  that  the  excitement  and 
revulsion  of  feeling  might  prove  too  much  for 
his  fast  failing  strength  ;  but  it  seemed  rather 
to  nerve  and  invigorate  him.  For  the  first 
ten  days  after  the  discovery  of  Bentley's  plot 
against  him,  he  had  steadily  gained  in 
strength  and  appetite,  and  his  wan  face  had 
seemed  to  fill  out,  and  to  lose  its  look  of 
pallid  whiteness. 

"  Oh  !  Allan  will  get  well,  won't  he,  Mrs. 
Leonard  ?  "  little  Charlie  Grant  had  asked 
only  yesterday,  as  he  leaned  on  the  arm  of 
Allan's  chair.  "  He  does  look  so  bright  and 
well." 

And  Mrs.  Leonard  answered  hopefully, 
that  she  thought  he  might,  at  least,  grow 
strong  enough  to  go  up  to  the  Hall,  and  see 
them  all  some  day. 

Charlie  had  been  his  first  visitor  after  Dr. 
Drayton  and  the  Bentleys.  Early  on  the 
Sabbath  morning  following,  he  had  asked 


THE  "  STARRY  NIGHT."  193 


permission  to  stop  in  before  Sabbath  school 
with  Ned  ;  and  Dr.  Drayton,  ready  to  grant 
any  request  which  might  give  pleasure  to 
Allan,  had  given  his  consent.  Since  then,  he 
had  been  as  much  with  Allan  as  his  school- 
duties  would  permit  ;  and  no  little  ten-year- 
old  nurse  could  have  been  more  careful  and 
tender  in  his  attentions,  nor  more  enthusias- 
tically hopeful  of  his  patient's  recovery. 

But  for  the  last  day  or  two,  Allan  had  been 
slowly  sinking  back  into  the  weakness  and 
lassitude  from  which  he  had  been  so  sudden- 
ly roused.  "  You  are  looking  very  tired  and 
exhausted,"  Mrs.  Leonard  had  said  to  him 
the  night  before,  as  she  gave  his  pillows  a  last 
touch  before  she  lay  down  to  rest  on  the  sofa 
in  his  room. 

"  Yes,"  he  had  answered  wearily.  "  The 
bed  feels  very  comfortable.  Perhaps  I  had 
better  not  attempt  to  leave  it  again." 

He  had  been  comparatively  quiet  all  night, 
and  just  at  dawn  she  lay  awake,  listening  for 
18 


194  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


any  sound  from  him,  and  hoping  from  his 
stillness  that  he  might  be  sleeping  comfortably, 
when  a  little  choking  sound  which  she  had 
heard  once  before,  and  which  she  knew  only 
too  well,  made  her  spring  to  her  feet  in  terror. 
He  raised  himself  in  the  bed,  and  put  his 
hands  over  his  mouth,  but  the  crimson  tide 
would  not  be  stayed. 

The  only  word  he  spoke,  when  at  length  he 
opened  his  eyes,  was  —  "  Ned  ;  "  and  Dr. 
Buford,  who  was  sitting  beside  him,  whis- 
pered hurriedly,  — 

"  Send  at  once  if  he  wants  him,  or  it  will 
be  too  late." 

"  So  soon,"  said  Allan  ;  and  then  he 
shook  his  head  with  a  curious,  incredulous 
little  smile. 

And  he  was  right.  The  gentle  Angel  of 
Death  paused  on  the  threshold  through  all 
that  day.  They  knew  that  he  stood  there, 
but  he  did  not  enter  in.  Hour  after  hour 
passed  on,  and  Ned  still  sat  beside  his  friend, 


THE  "STARRY  NIGHT."  195 


their  hands  clasped  close  ;  and  still,  although 
Allan  could  only  speak  a  word  from  time  to 
time,  the  angel  stood  waiting. 

It  was  growing  toward  dusk  when  he 
moved  his  hand  in  Ned's  clasp,  and  whis- 
pered, "  Will  you  give  me  this  one  gift?" 

"What  is  it?"  asked  Ned,  tenderly  as  a 
woman  speaks  to  her  dying  child. 

"  Forgiveness  for  Arthur." 

"  O  Allan  !  "  He  bent  his  face  down  upon 
the  pillow.  Allan  lifted  his  hand,  and  laid  it 
upon  his  forehead. 

"  My  poor  Ned!  'Tis  a  costly  gift,  but  I 
want  it  so." 

The  dusky  twilight  passed  on  into  the 
night,  a  glorious  night  of  cloudless  sky,  beau- 
tiful with  brilliant  stars;  and  yet  the  face 
upon  the  pillow  had  given  no  answer.  By 
and  by  Allan  spoke  again,  — 

"  I  am  so  tired,"  he  said.  "  Lie  down  be- 
side me,  Ned,  and  let  us  sleep,  as  we  used  to 
sleep  together  at  school" 


196  ALLAN  HAY  WOOD. 


Ned  rose,  and  lying  down  at  his  side  put 
his  arm  about  his  neck,  and  kissed  him.  "  I 
will  try  my  very  best,"  he  said  ;  "  but,  oh  ! 
Allan,  it  is  very  hard." 

"  Yes,"  said  Allan  ;  "  but  I  know  that  you 
will  do  it,  for  '  thy  love  to  me  is  wonderful, 
passing  the  love  of  women.  '  ' 

He  lay  very  still,  looking  out  of  the  open 
window;  and  Mrs.  Leonard  stole  away, 
thinking  he  might  sleep  if  alone  with  Ned. 
But  she  had  scarcely  left  them,  when  he  said, 
"  What  were  the  exact  words  of  my  poor  old 
song,  Ned  ?  Do  you  remember  ? 

"  I  think  I  had  rather  hear  it,  that  voice  so 
low  and  sweet  "  — 

"  I  think  I  would  rather  hear  it,  that  voice  so  low  and 

sweet, 

Calling  me  out  from  the  shadows,  my  loving  Lord  to  meet  ; 
Up  through  the  glowing  splendors  of  a  starry,  earthly  night, 
To  see  the  King  in  His  beauty  in  a  land  of  purer  light," 

repeated  Ned. 

"  Yes,  it  would  be  very  beautiful,"  said 
Allan,  his  voice  sinking  low  again,  "  To 


THE  "STARRY  NIGHT."  197 


step  from  glowing  star  to  glowing  star  until 
we  find  ourselves  standing  in  the  glorious 
light  of  His  face.  I  am  so  tired,  Ned.  Let 
us  go  to  sleep." 

Turning  a  little,  he  laid  his  hand  on  Ned's 
shoulder,  and  seemed  to  fall  into  a  quiet 
slumber  at  once.  Ned  listened  a  few  mo- 
ments to  his  gentle  breathing;  and  then, 
wearied  out  with  his  grief,  fell  asleep  beside 
him. 

Mrs.  Leonard,  watching  in  the  next  room, 
came  in  at  last  to  look  at  the  two  boys.  She 
stood  beside  the  one  for  a  moment,  bent  and 
kissed  the  white,  still  face  ;  then  leaning  over 
Ned,  softly  spoke  his  name.  He  opened  his 
eyes,  and  held  up  his  finger  warningly. 

"  He  has  had  his  wish,"  she  whispered 
tenderly.  "  He  has  gone  from  the  shadows, 
through  the  glowing,  starry  night,  to  see  the 
King  in  His  beauty." 


Cambridge :  Frees  of  John  Wilson  and  Son. 


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